The Great Mr Jane
by YulianaHenderson
Summary: COMPLETE. "'The... the blue-green eyes... Walter doesn't have...' Teresa got up and ran two hands through her hair. She groaned as she arrived at the window, clearly hesitating in telling me the truth. 'Teresa, you can trust me-' 'Christina isn't Walter's.'" AU, takes place in the 1920s. Probably OOC as well. Jisbon, rated T just to be safe. Slightly based on 'The Great Gatsby'.
1. Chapter One

**A/N: Warning; this story is ****_mildly_**** based on 'The Great Gatsby', and with mildly I mean that the title is from the book and the first few sentences of this chapter. Some of my friends/muses say that the title suggests it's really freaking much based on the book, but it's not. If you've read the book and then would read this story, you would be seriously able to name the differences. It's just obvious ^^**

**A bit of crucial information: This story is AU. You see, capital letters and all? And probably OOC as well, but that's inevitable with a plot like this. And it takes place in 'The Roaring Twenties', so just after the First World War, in America. I could be mistaken by some actions the characters make in comparison to how people acted in 1920, but I'm not a historian so bear with me. I'm doing my absolute best. It could also be a bit further back into the past, ****_before_**** the First World War instead of ****_after_****, but you'll be the judge on that then.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, I own only my stupid imagination.**

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**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since.

"Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone," he told me, "just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantage that you've had."

That was all he said, he didn't say much more. We've never been on speaking terms much, and we will probably never be, but what he said made me think.

I grew up in the east of the States, with both my parents, looking after me whenever they could. Or, say, they pretended they did but they never actually cared about me.

My mother used to say that women who are too dependent of their parents won't get rich and handsome husbands, and so she forced me to become that sort of independent woman I did not want to be.

By all means, I do love my parents, dearly even. They raised me and they made me who I am today – in a way, at least. They created me and put me on this world – I didn't have a choice in that. They raised me, but that does not mean I would give them any parental rights over me whatsoever. If it had been possible I would have left them a long time ago.

In the end, it had been my mother's downfall; she had taught me that women needed to be fools, beautiful little fools. They shouldn't think about things too much or they will get hurt. By putting me in my room all day long, all on my own, they made me independent and I had a lot of time to think about things.

Yet the lesson my father gave me about judging people is a lesson that I savor much. It is something that makes sense, if you compared it to all the BS that he said most days.

Not that I would ever acknowledge the fact that my parents had any part in making me happy, not _at all_.

They gave me what I needed alright, with their fortune earned by our wholesale hardware business, but they never gave me what I _wanted_.

Especially not when they had suggested to go to the South East. That had been the proverbial last straw for me.

That is probably why I'm standing in the west of the States now, but it's still a blur how I got here. I could faintly remember a good looking man on the way here who had helped me find my way, but I'm afraid that's all I know.

Oh, now I remember. I was going to visit my niece.

I had never met her. That's the downside of having a family that's so big you can even question if there are relatives at the other side of the ocean.

I did know that she was my third cousin once removed, so she shouldn't look that much like me at all. Not that I had ever known what 'third cousin' meant. I suspected it meant that we had a great-great-grandparent in common - I realized it was going to be a tough case to find her in a city like Sacramento but I had high hopes nonetheless. I should be able to come up with a believable story still if she didn't believe me though, if I hadn't lost my touch.

I straightened my dress and walked up to the big mansion that appeared to be the biggest in the neighborhood. I had to admit, my niece had a nice catch there. I doubted it that she really loved her husband, but with a house like this, I wouldn't complain either.

I knocked on the door and it took over half a minute before someone opened the door. A young girl, around her twenties, maybe younger, appeared in the doorway, wearing a maid outfit and she looked stressed, fumbling with the cords on her dress as soon as she saw me.

"Uhm... hello? How can I help you?" she asked in an almost angelic voice. I looked her over for a few more seconds, then answered her.

"I'm here to visit my niece, Teresa. I'm Grace van Pelt."

The girl seemed to be startled, but then nodded and retreated a bit. "Wait a minute, Ma'am, I'm going to check if Mrs. Mashburn is ready to welcome you."

"Sure, take as long as you want," I answered, and the girl managed a small smile before inviting me inside. She motioned for me to wait in the hall, and as she rushed up the stairs, I took the opportunity to inspect the interior.

The outside of the house hadn't lied about the inside – big, white/black pillars were standing spread all over the room, quite possibly to support the weight of the rest of the house. The floor looked like you could eat from it, and you could probably see your reflection in it as well. There was silverware on some tables, together with crystal clear wine glasses. All of this made think that I had stepped into a hospital, everything was too clean.

Two big stairs lead to the first floor in a faint turn, one left and one right, and just as I was about to climb the stairs to look at the expensive stuff that was stored there, when I saw a blur of dark-brown hair and white cotton and lace run past me, only to rush back to stand in front of me.

"Grace?" the woman asked, and I nodded. A smile crept on the woman's features and she motioned for me to follow her. We walked to the living room together and I realized when I saw a big portrait of her and a man hanging above the fireplace that this woman was my niece.

"I have heard so much about you – oh, all positive, don't worry. It has been a while, hasn't it?" she asked, and I smiled.

"A lifetime, to be precise." She rolled her eyes, but she sat down on the big couch, sprawling her white dress around her just so that it looked acceptable.

She smiled at me, and her emerald green eyes smiled just as much. I knew not to judge but I could see in the way she cared that she was a loveable woman.

"Well then, since we haven't had a proper introduction yet: I'm Teresa Mashburn. That," she said, pointing at the painting I had seen earlier, "is my husband, Walter Mashburn."

"Really a catch, huh?" I asked, and she wanted to shrug, I could see it in the way her shoulders twitched, but instead she smiled and nodded.  
"He is."

"Do you have children?"

Teresa's smile widened and she nodded again, this time a bit more enthusiastically, making her long subtle curls bounce beside her face. She raised her arm and pointed at a painting behind me.

I turned around, never actually moving in my chair, and was immediately met by piercing green eyes, as piercing as Teresa's but mixed with an odd form of blue that gave the child's eyes an almost mysterious look. The kid did have the same hair as her mother, though. For the painting, the girl's locks had been braided and attached to the top of her head, giving her a playful bun. Overall, the girl had a pretty appearance.

It didn't escape my attention that neither of the females had hairstyles that fit today's fashion standards - but then again, knowing the stubborn temperament of my family, however far away, Teresa would probably encourage her daughter to find her own style.

"That's Christina. She is seven now."

I smiled as I turned back to Teresa. She was looking with nothing but admiration at her daughter, before she noticed my attention was on her and she shook her head to clear her thoughts.

"Why are you here, Grace?"

"My, uh... my parents and I... we had a disagreement, of some sorts."

Teresa looked me over for a few seconds, obviously trying to put her finger on my personality but failing. Concerning that, I was a closed book. That's what my mum taught me. It was best to keep things you didn't want to discuss to yourself.

"I won't ask," she said, and ran a quick hand through her hair. "If it is going to be necessary, you can live in the old house at the end of the street. It's my husband's."

Okay, so the Mashburns were influential – or rather, Walter Mashburn was. Teresa merely had the luck to have the good looks so she was fancied by a man like him. And probably, she was a 'beautiful, little fool', like my mother described women with Teresa's status. It was new money that Teresa had, and easy money, since the only thing she had to do was being pretty and carrying his children – which weren't that much children, apparently.

I could remember hearing a few men talking about the Mashburns while on my way to Sacramento. I had heard things like 'richest man in the city, state even' and 'married to a pretty young thing'. That last thing wasn't true anymore, obviously, since Teresa was evidently in her mid-thirties. If anything would come to happen to their marriage, she would be alone for the rest of her life – nobody wanted a woman her age.

"That would be just fine, thank you."

Teresa smiled, let out an absent sigh and when she looked at the window for a brief moment, she almost jumped up. She realized what she had done, apologized to me and walked over to the front door of the house. The fact that she didn't let the maid open the door meant this was someone that Teresa really cared about, and when I heard the distinctive sounds of people kissing, I knew it was her husband.

I felt a wave of warm feelings spread itself through the house.

They talked for a few minutes, before both of them walked into the living room. I stood up and walked over to Walter.

For a few moments, I doubted why my niece had married this man. Yes, he had some potential to be handsome but in the end, of course, money counted. He was a man of mid-thirty, begin forty, with a hard mouth and a supercilious manner. From these two shining arrogant hazel eyes he was scanning me from head to toe, stopping at my chest for a few seconds. He didn't bother to censor it for his wife, who chose to simply ignore it. Under those riding clothes, you could see he wasn't overly muscled but he did seem to have enough strength, seeing as a great pack of muscle shifted when he reached out to shake my hand. Overall, this man didn't look polite at all – he had a cruel body.

"Walter Mashburn," he said, taking my hand and placing a kiss on the top. "And you are...?"

"Grace van Pelt."

"She's family," Teresa added, and I nodded. "The daughter of Max and Rose."

Walter's eyes shot open wide as he remembered who my parents were.

"Oh, Maxwell van Pelt. Yes, I know him. Do sit down," he said, pointing at the couch I had just sat on. Walter and Teresa sat down next to each other, keeping an appropriate distance.

Then, our conversation died into an awkward silence. I could feel the tension between the two. It was as if they had been arguing before he had left and had only kept up a mask pretending everything was fine by kissing once he had come home. It was clear to me they had a secret way of dealing with things.

I had my doubts about this marriage.

"So you gave her the house next to Jane?" Walter asked Teresa. She nodded, and then turned to me.

"He can be a bit... stubborn, Mr. Jane, but on the whole, he's a nice man," she said. Walter huffed.  
"Sure he is. If he throws parties, he is. He is nothing good, Teresa, you should know that by now."

Teresa looked at her husband who was openly expressing his abhorrence towards this Mr. Jane, her eyes showing all too well that she didn't agree with him. But she just nodded, and averted her eyes.

It all fell into place in that moment, but I decided not to question them. They had to find out themselves. If they hadn't already, that is.

And after all, who were I to judge? Maybe I was entirely wrong. I didn't want to destroy that important first impression by saying things that weren't correct.

That moment, I heard a loud shriek and before I knew it, Teresa was being attacked by a little girl.

"Chrissie," she chuckled and hugged her daughter to her. If Walter was disturbed by the behavior of his daughter then he was really good at hiding it, but he didn't need to voice his thoughts for me to notice - he had that sparkle in his eyes that I saw in my own father's eyes too many times whenever he was vexed. "Where is Johanna?"

Christina shrugged, and wriggled herself in between her parents. "I don't know. She was doing my hair and she ran away to open the door and I haven't seen her since."

"Oh, Good Lord, she's distracted way too fast," Walter said. Teresa shot him a pointed look.

"She probably just forgot what she was doing."

"We should hire a new maid."  
"But maids in general are not supposed to look after children, Walter. You wanted to save money."  
"Well fine, we'll get Christina a nanny then. But only because she's not behaving properly."

"Who? Chrissie or Johanna?"

"Both."

Teresa almost groaned and averted her eyes from her husband once again. Christina reached out to grab her mother's hand and placed a brief kiss in her palm. Teresa smiled. It was evident that Christina knew exactly when her parents were having an argument, and knew exactly when she had to comfort her mother.

Christina was taking her mother's side much too clearly, which made me wonder if she felt anything for her father.

That's when Christina noticed me. Her eyes widened for a bit, then she jumped up to run towards me.  
"Wow, mummy, look at her hair! It's so beautiful!" she exclaimed, diving down beside me.

"Chrissie, please," Teresa uttered as Walter had crossed his arms and refused to look at the little girl. Christina pouted, then calmed down and straightened her back.

"Hi," she told me, and I smiled. I reached out to shake her hand, and she did.

"I'm Christina Mashburn. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said in a scripted manner, and I looked at Teresa for a few moments, who just shrugged and crossed her legs.

"Hi Christina, I'm Grace van Pelt."  
"Grace, that's a beautiful name."

"And Christina is too."

She chuckled.

"I'm something like family of your mother, Christina. I'm from the East."

"What do you mean with 'something like family'?"

I chuckled, and shook my head. "It's a long story. Let's just say that I'm your mother's niece."  
"But you don't look like each other-"  
"Christina, could you go look for Johanna now?" Walter asked, interrupting our little talk, and the girl once again pouted. She nodded though, walked over to her parents to kiss both their cheeks, and then ran off to find the maid.

I could feel the tension once again, and the whole warm feeling I had felt when Walter had stepped into the house had disappeared. Husband and wife were now turned away from each other. The expression on their faces was edging anger, for both of them, but I didn't give it much more thought.

It wasn't like I hadn't seen married people like this before. Most men like Walter wouldn't marry women that they loved – simply women that other people loved so that his reputation would become even better.

Poor Teresa.

Walter sighed, and got up. "I have a meeting."  
Teresa nodded, but didn't get up. Walter rolled his eyes, not in a funny way but in a way that you could see he was annoyed, and walked out of the room.

I waited until I heard heavy footsteps on the stairs to confront Teresa.  
"Do you still think he's a catch?" I asked her. She shot me a pointed look, as pointed as she had given her husband, then her expression softened a bit as she realized that I couldn't possibly know her position.

"It's not his fault, Grace."

"Do you care to elaborate on that a bit more?"

Teresa shrugged. "Maybe."

I swallowed, looked around the room and my eyes fell on the painting of Christina once again. I couldn't put my finger on it exactly why, but I had the feeling that Christina was the reason for the couple's disagreements.  
"Is it something Christina did?"

"No."

"You then?"  
She swallowed thickly, and nodded.

"The... the blue-green eyes... Walter doesn't have..."

Teresa got up and ran two hands through her hair. She groaned as she arrived at the window, clearly hesitating in telling me the truth.

"Teresa, you can trust me-"  
"Christina isn't Walter's."  
My thoughts had been confirmed in that very moment, and as Teresa hugged her body with her arms, I knew it was a difficult subject for her. Obviously, she didn't want to damage their marriage since that was the only thing she had at the moment, but this was something that was going to ruin it no matter what if it left the confines of this house. But it couldn't be nobody had noticed this. It couldn't be that I were the first person to notice that the blue in Christina's eyes came from a different man than Walter.

"It... it was a mistake. A big, _big_, mistake. But Walter can't forgive me. I cheated on him and he can't forgive me for it. It's not like he doesn't cheat on me, I know the truth, in fact, I know all of his mistresses, but..." She groaned, and looked at the painting of Christina again. "I don't have another choice. I want the best for my little girl." She sighed, and looked at me again. "I'm glad you're here. I can a have a distraction now."

She walked back to the couch. "You need to promise me something, Grace."  
I nodded.  
"Don't tell Walter you know this. And don't go around the city telling people you know this either. I don't know how many people know but I don't want to be the center of attention, you see. Not in that sense of the word."

"I see. Your secret is safe with me."  
"Oh, and don't talk with Mr. Jane. Please, don't."

Now that was a strange demand, but I would stick to it either way.  
"Sure. No talking. Got it."  
Teresa smiled weakly, but let out a sigh of relief. She sat down, repeating the same movement she had done before with her dress.

As I heard a loud laugh from a few rooms away, I realized that coming here to visit my niece was going to be more adventurous than I had anticipated before.

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**A/N: So Christina is not Walter's, obviously. So whose is she then? *wink wink* You'll get a confirmation, I promise.**

**I hope I have your interest now with this chapter! Let me know if you want to read more!**

**And you'll find out eventually why this story is called 'The Great Mr. Jane'. I know it looks like Lisbon or Van Pelt are the main characters now, and they are, but Van Pelt is so important because it's her point of view and Lisbon is only, let's say, 'an accessory', to Jane's story. But we'll get there, Lisbon will be awesome in this story, I promise! My love for Lisbon will always win against everything ^^**

**I could have stretched out the thing about Christina not being Walter's but it was better to just cut to the chase right away. There are still a lot of things to be revealed, obviously, so I didn't really ruin the surprise factor. Or did I? :P And Christina is NOT Kristina Frye, I hate that woman so no.**


	2. Chapter Two

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, was feeling a bit unsure about this story but I'll just post now despite the feedback! ^^**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

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**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

I stayed with the Mashburns for dinner, though the man of the house wasn't there since he had a meeting.

Which, consequently, made all the females a bit looser, as it were. I had seen that Teresa had tried really hard to behave properly when around her husband, but she didn't care about etiquette now any longer. She just laughed freely and didn't do anything when Christina ran away from the table to fetch a doll she wanted to show me.

The little girl insisted she _had_ to sit next to me, because she wanted to get to know me. She liked me, that was a no-brainer, but I felt that there was much more to it. Maybe she felt lonely sometimes, I didn't know, but I was destined to find out more about this intriguing girl.

Even the maid, Johanna, had joined, and I found out she was a sweet girl. She was engaged and it was clear she really loved her man, if the way her eyes sparkled when she talked about him was any indication.

She wasn't the only worker here, though. As Christina had announced that they were to have dinner by running through the house and the garden, more and more people came into the dining room until we were with seven.

The Mashburns had two cooks, Wayne and Cho, two mid-twenty men. Wayne was the taller man's first name, and the shorter man refused to have people call him by his first name, which was Kimball. They made a good team, especially since their biggest fan, a certain seven year old, could always go to one of them for cake or something else tasty – and they never complained. Christina had almost knocked the food out of Wayne's hands when the two men had walked into the dining room, as she wanted to give him a big hug. That was probably to blackmail them into making a pie.

From outside, a young man entered the dining room as well. I had already seen him a few times but judging from his wet hair, he had taken a shower and changed clothes. He had introduced himself to me as Luther Wainwright, the gardener. He hadn't gotten the same reaction from Christina as the two cooks, but she wasn't indifferent about him either. Teresa said that Luther was new and Christina still had to get used to him. Rumor had it he wasn't even twenty yet. It was never confirmed though, as Walter and Teresa didn't find it important to know his age – he was older than eighteen, that was all they needed to know.

"So, you're from the East?" Wayne asked, and I swallowed the food I was eating before nodding.

"New York."

"I've always wanted to go there."  
"Maybe she can take you," Cho deadpanned, and Wayne shot him a look before rolling his eyes and facing me again.

"Why are you here?"

I shrugged. "My parents wanted to take me to Florida but I didn't want to go there. And since I legally have the right to do what I want since I'm twenty-one, I decided I could see the west coast. And I knew for a fact that I had family here," I said, smiling at Teresa who smiled back, "that was the best plan I could think of."

I saw a faint twinkle in Wayne's eyes, and as I looked into his clear blue eyes, my breath caught in my throat.

Of course Christina stopped me from thinking about it more.

"Auntie Grace, do you have a boyfriend?"

The people sitting around the table suppressed chuckles and laughs, and even Teresa seemed amused by her daughter's question. She didn't move to stop her daughter either, so she was curious to know the answer too.

I shook my head. "No, I don't."

"Okay great, because Wayne is looking for a girlfriend-"  
"Chrissie," Teresa interrupted now, followed directly by loud laughs, and I felt my cheeks turning red immediately. I ran a hand through my hair and shook my head. I didn't want to be in the spotlights and this wasn't any difference. I observe a play, rather than performing it.

"Sorry, Grace," Teresa apologized. I merely shook my head.

"It's okay."

The company broke into conversation again and I found myself caught between a chat about the latest new ingredients one could use to improve a Christmas cake and one about Teresa's hair. It didn't escape my notice that nobody named either Walter or Mr. Jane. So they either didn't know about Mr. Jane or knew everything about it and thought I didn't know.

I hadn't even met Mr. Jane, but it was already obvious what was happening here. I couldn't wait to meet him, but I had promised Teresa not to talk to him so therefore I wouldn't. But I could still observe him from a distance, couldn't I?

Once dinner was over, everybody went to do their tasks – Wayne and Cho went to do the dishes, Luther finished up his work in the garden and Johanna grabbed Christina's hand and brought her upstairs.

Teresa and I were left alone, and as soon as everybody was gone, she got up and helped the cooks with gathering plates from the table. Now here was something I hadn't seen coming. I was used to seeing the lady of the house bossing around people to do their tasks but they would never help them. But then again, Teresa wasn't a normal lady so that would probably justify her actions.

She smiled at me when she found me staring at her. "I usually help them, when Walter isn't here. It's just so much to carry with."

Her intentions were good, but due to her size, she couldn't even carry half of what the cooks had carried with them. And so it was that when Cho walked out of the kitchen to see Teresa carrying the plates with him, he just gave her an expressionless face.

"You shouldn't do that, Ma'am," was all he said, but Teresa shook her head.

"I should."

"You don't have to make things up for us, Ma'am."

"I'm not trying to. And anyways, you still work for my husband so technically, you work for _me_ too, so just let me help you. Oh, and you can call me Teresa, cut it with the Ma'am stuff."

He looked at her with a slight frown, then just sighed and let her step through the door to the kitchen. His eyes caught mine and I saw the annoyance. I simply chuckled.

Wayne exited the kitchen as well, looking in surprise at the room before turning to us.

"Did she just..."

"Yeah, don't mention it."

"Why does she keep doing that?" Wayne asked, collecting the utensils. Cho shook his head. He wanted to give an answer before he realized that I was there, and the words died on his tongue.

"Never mind," he said and walked back to the kitchen. As Teresa wanted to grab more things, Wayne stopped her.

"Don't. Let us do this. You've got a visitor."

Teresa rolled her eyes, but gave in and walked up to me. She led me to the living room, and we sat down again.

We talked about the relatives that we apparently had in common and I felt myself liking this woman more and more with the minute. I had already had that impression the first moment I had met her, but it kept on being confirmed – Teresa was very loveable. She was a great mother, a great leader as the lady of the house, and a good wife as well, though she probably wouldn't second that statement. She still fought to keep her marriage and that was what made her a good wife – and the willpower to keep playing the act rather than simply dropping it was admirable, to say the least.

When Johanna entered the living room and said that Christina was ready for bed, Teresa excused herself. When she came back, she had a smile from ear to ear on – and I had even more reasons to like this woman: her love for her child was _more_ than admirable.

Apparently, even though Christina was probably the reason for the marriage problems, Teresa still loved her as if she was a little angel that had come from heaven. And Christina was, of course.

"I think I should better leave," I said, and Teresa nodded.  
"Let me walk you to your house, then."

From all the houses in the neighborhood the Mashburns lived in, their house was the biggest, that much was obvious, but I also found it the most beautiful one.

With the red bricks and the white window panes, the house got a somewhat modern vibe. The front door was exactly in the middle of the house, and the floor above had a balcony, being supported by white pillars. At the left side of the building, a white wing was build. It didn't seem out of place compared to the red bricks, in fact, it looked as if it had always been there – which wasn't the fact, the materials used in the house itself and the wing were different. From where I was standing, I could see a small garden house, in white again. That was probably placed there for Christina, since I could see dolls sitting in the window sills.

It felt like a physical pain to leave the house behind, but my temporary house wasn't so bad either.

My house was probably half the size of the Mashburn Mansion, if not smaller, but it still had the appearance of being a mansion. It didn't look out of place in a neighborhood like this, though you could definitely see that this house was smaller than the rest. The outside was covered with white wood, and the roofing tiles were a dark gray. Leading to the front door was a little patio, spread all over the front of the house, and on the edges were white wooden fences standing.

As Teresa and I stood in front of the house, she looked around.

"Virgil Minelli lives there," she said, pointing across the street. The house looked the same like mine, but it was bigger and customized.

"And that is Mr. Jane's mansion," she said, pointing at the house next to mine.

Okay, so maybe the Mashburn Mansion wasn't the biggest.

Mr. Jane's mansion was probably twice as big as the Mashburn Mansion, and had the same kind of exterior, although the house had an older look. The bricks were dark yellow, some darker than the others. The graceful curves in the façade gave the overall impression of the house just a bit more charm.

I saw the way Teresa looked at the mansion, with a strange mixture of longing and detest. Was it really that I had seen these emotions in her eyes, or was it just my imagination rearing its ugly head here?

"I won't talk to him, Teresa."

She nodded. "I know."

"Good night," I said, smiled faintly at her and opened the door to my temporary home.

"Grace," Teresa stopped me, and I smiled again when I turned around.

"Thank you, for being here. I needed someone like you."

She looked at me in a manner of love and relief, and I found I could do nothing else but to swallow away the lump in my throat.

"No problem, Teresa. Don't worry about Chrissie, you're doing just fine." With that, I stepped into the house and closed the door behind me.

I didn't bother with checking the interior, I would find out what the house looked like eventually. I was going to stay here for just a few days, I knew that.

What I did do was walking to one window that had a view on Mr. Jane's house and studying it like I had done before.

I immediately saw a figure standing in the windows of the other house, and I startled, putting back the curtains. Had that been Mr. Jane? I couldn't possibly know since I knew nothing about the man.

Eventually, curiosity got the better of me and I pushed away the heavy curtains again. The shadow in the window was standing in the exact same position as I had left it, but now, the curtains were pushed away, and I was able to make out a few features – it was obviously a man, on his head blonde curls if the light wasn't lying, and his shape didn't look either too fat or too skinny, just good.

The man then suddenly lifted his hand and waved at me, and I pushed back the curtains.

I would find out if that was Mr. Jane eventually. Probably tomorrow before I went back to the Mashburn Mansion.

Or so I thought.

Because when I was preparing myself for bed, I heard a knock on the front door. Nobody would come and visit me at such a late hour, especially not one of the Mashburns because they had their own problems to deal with now. So it had to be the person that had waved at me.

I wrapped a robe around myself and opened the door. I immediately saw blonde curls and a blinding 1000-watt smile.

"Hi. You must be Grace van Pelt." He reached out to shake my hand, but I frowned.

"How do you know my name?"

His smile widened.

"Why, I know the entire family of Teresa Lisbon."

"Mashburn. Teresa Mashburn."

He paused, as if struggling to accept that she was called Mashburn now, then nodded. "Yes, sorry. Mashburn."

I looked the man over. He was wearing a three-piece-suit, giving him a formal look, but it all left a bit when I saw he wasn't wearing a matching tie.

"No need to ogle me, Grace. I'm Jane. Patrick Jane," he said, and I froze.  
"Mr. Jane?"

"Jane. Mr. Jane. What's the difference?" he asked. He seemed really full of himself. His expression dropped once he saw mine, though. "You may call me what you want, Grace."

I frowned, but nodded. "Why are you here, Jane?"

"Can I come in?" he asked, but he already moved past me into my home. I rolled my eyes.

"Sure you can," I said, needlessly, and closed the door. He looked around for a few moments, before he sat down and waited until I did too.

He hesitated in speaking. He didn't come across to me as being a cruel man, quite the contrary, his whole demeanor screamed that this person was loveable – it was the same feeling I had felt when I had first met Teresa.

"I'm sure you've heard some things about me."

"Actually, no."

He seemed genuinely surprised, but then simply smiled. Yet his eyes weren't lying. He was hurt that nobody had told me anything about him. It was obvious to me everybody was trying to avoid him, after being told to avoid him several times, but I didn't get _why_ they were trying to avoid him. If he was a loveable person, why would anyone hate him? And not just one person, a whole household disliked him.

"Very well. I would have assumed the Mashburns would have given you a proper introduction to me, but apparently, they didn't find it necessary. That's fine." He shifted in his seat so that he was leaning forward, his body closer to mine this way. "Christina... she's not Walter's daughter."

"I figured."

He nodded, averted his eyes. He paused.

"She's yours."

Jane didn't seem startled at all – or he was hiding it very well, which I didn't think he would do when it came down to Christina. Everybody seemed to care for her, which was sweet.

He nodded. "She is."

It became silent then, not an awkward one but not a comfortable one either.

"Does Christina know?"

Jane shook his head as he leaned back into the seat again. "No, she doesn't. Walter didn't want us to tell her."

"And us being you and Teresa?"

"Yes. Teresa and I... we had a short thing going on seven years ago but it got out of hand when Walter discovered. I used to live a few blocks away from them, but when he found out, he made me move to this part of the city, forcing me to look as Teresa moved on with him and our daughter and forgot about me. He wanted to punish me."

"And did he succeed?"

"Oh yes, he did. Christina doesn't know who I am, apart from knowing that I'm Mr. Jane and that she should stay away from me. She doesn't know why, but then again that's not a surprise at her age."

I nodded my understanding, and suddenly it became clear why everybody tried to avoid the subject of 'Mr. Jane'. He had been a threat for a 'perfect' marriage and Walter had probably forced everybody to stop discussing the threat, to save his reputation.

"Haven't you ever tried to win back Teresa? I don't want to judge but her marriage with Walter doesn't seem to be a good one."

"You're right with saying that, but I tried. I did. And Teresa knows. But I don't want to bring her into a bad position. She already has to lie about her daughter's father the entire time, I don't want to make things more difficult for her."

"I get that, but don't you want her to be happy-"

"Of course I do, because I love her! But I can't have her compromise her reputation for _me_. I'm not worth anything anyhow." He jumped up and walked into the direction of the front door. I acted fast and followed him. "I just wanted to drop by to inform you about the way things go around here. I don't want you to think I'm a bad person too, only because I wanted to destroy a marriage."

"I don't think you are, Jane."

"Of course not. If you... if you see Christina tomorrow, could you tell her I said hello? I know it won't mean much to her but I have never really spoken to her. I want her to know I exist so..." he said, and then let the sentence die down. I swallowed.

The poor man, he had to carry so much weight on these shoulders of his. He didn't even seem to be older than thirty, and though I knew life changing experiences much like these weren't restricted to age, nobody should ever go through what this man was going through. I could only imagine what it must be like to see your daughter growing up without you.

"So that it will be easier to win her back when she's older," I added, and he looked up at me and nodded. He smiled a small smile, glad that I understood him. I nodded to him, and he left.

I ran over to the window and quickly pushed away the curtain, only to find Jane strolling over to his front door, looking into my direction first before casting a glance at the Mashburn Mansion which was easily seeable from where he was standing.

I watched him enter his house and then went upstairs as well.

I let out a pondering sigh as I covered myself in the warm covers in my bed. I had to help Mr. Jane somehow. I could see it in somebody's eyes when they had the feeling that they had done something horribly wrong and didn't know how to solve it. And not only Mr. Jane had that in his eyes – Teresa too.

And the fact that they had a shared feeling about a thing that they actually shared was pitiful.

I had to help them.

* * *

**A/N: So Van Pelt will help Jane and Lisbon come back together? Well that's certainly interesting... Let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter Three

**A/N: There is no excuse for the delay, so I'm therefore not going to give you an excuse. Just read this chapter, hope I'm not disappointing you!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

* * *

**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

It didn't come as the slightest surprise that I was woken up by loud knocks against the front door. I had my suspicions of who was there but honestly, it could only be one person.

I groaned and got up, as the knocks became harder and louder. It sounded even as if someone else joined. The knocks reached a refrain and I opened the door, pulling the robe I had quickly put on closer to me.

"Hi Auntie Grace!" Christina exclaimed, big, flashing smile on her face, and it was only now I could see the resemblance she had to her biological father, now that I had finally met him. Her smile looked like a smaller version of Mr. Jane's 1000-watt smile.

Teresa smiled apologetically. "Sorry Grace, but I figured, since Chrissie had already woken you up I might as well join."

Christina chuckled and grabbed my hand, but Teresa pulled her back.

"Chrissie, honey, we only came here to tell Grace something-"

"Oh, yes! Auntie Grace, we're going shopping today! So if you want to join us you need to put on your prettiest dress! Wayne is coming too so you don't have an excuse!" She chuckled again, and I could not help but smile. This girl had the strange ability to make people smile with cheeky comments. If it had been someone else, I would not have tolerated what the girl implied, but I couldn't blame Christina. After all, she was merely seven years old. How could she know that this was behavior not socially accepted by most people?

"Well then, if Wayne is coming I suppose I have to come too, huh?" I asked, and Christina covered her mouth with one of her hands and chuckled again. She nodded.

"Yes! Because Wayne likes-"

"Chrissie, that's enough," Teresa interrupted, and Christina chuckled again before sobering down a bit.

"Why don't you go play around the garden a bit, Chrissie, then Grace and I can pick out her clothes."

"Okay, Mommy," she said, motioned for Teresa to bend slightly and went on tip-toe to reach the last few inches. She placed a kiss on her mother's cheek and then waved at me and ran off.

"Don't get me wrong, I love her but I swear to god, sometimes..." Teresa muttered as she entered my house and closed the door behind her. "Okay, I'm not so good with this but I guess I can always help a bit."

I smiled, and nodded.  
"What do you mean with not so good at this?" I asked as I climbed the stairs and Teresa followed me. She rolled her eyes.

"I suppose I'm not all that good at being a woman."

Now that didn't surprise me one bit, although it did surprise me that she put on a dress and made her daughter put on a dress as well.

"Yet you're wearing a dress."

"Yes, because I'm supposed to. Trust me, I don't like dresses."

I chuckled, nodding. I took in a deep breath and looked at all the clothes that were suddenly in my closet – how did they get _there_?

"Johanna made sure to put all your clothes in the closet yesterday," Teresa answered, as if she could read my mind. She walked over to the closet and got out a dress.

"I suppose this one will do," she said and handed it to me. I saw the dress and recognized it. I smiled. Just when I was about to say something, we heard a cry from outside and Teresa shot to the window, fearing the worst.

What we actually saw was probably worse than what she had been fearing – Jane was running with Christina through his garden, the two of them chuckling and having fun.

When I looked next to me, Teresa was already gone.

"Dammit!" I heard her exclaiming from the stairs, not bothering with censoring her language, and I quickly put on the dress she had chosen for me, then followed her.

"Teresa, it's okay!" I screamed after her, but I kept hearing the faint click of her heels until it disappeared, replaced by the front door being opened and Teresa's mouth.

"What do you think you're doing, huh? We discussed this, years ago, why would you do this to me?"

"To you? I just want to see my-"

"Don't you dare saying it. Don't you dare." By that time, I joined the fighting people in the garden, and Christina immediately ran over to me and grab my hand. Obviously, she was scared by her mother arguing with somebody she didn't know, and I could understand that. If only somebody would be able to come up with some sort of explanation for Christina, then her fears would probably vanish a tad.

"_What_ is your problem?" Jane asked, incredulously.

"You honestly don't see it, do you?"

"No, _honestly_, I don't. I don't, Teresa. I have the right to see her, just like you do. We both-"

"Jane, stop it, now, please. Not when Christina is around, not ever."

"Then please, come inside. We have to discuss this-"

"We did that years ago, Jane. We came to this conclusion-"

"_We _didn't, _Walter_ did. Teresa, you have to admit that we didn't discuss a thing. Walter set all the rules. I just want to talk to you, if just for a few minutes. If you don't want to talk to me, that's fine, but then listen."

"Jane..."

"Teresa, please. I'm sure Grace can take Christina with her, they're both capable enough-"

"How would you know-"

"I can see that, Teresa. Please. Just do this for me. Just this once."

Teresa turned around to look at me, an odd mix of anger and fear in her eyes. She walked over to me and stepped so close that what she was going to say could only be heard by me.

"I'm not sure about this, Grace."

"I know. I'll take Christina with me, we'll do something fun in your house, okay? Just listen to what he has to say."

She groaned, contemplating what she should do. I gently pushed her into Jane's direction, and she groaned once again before placing a small kiss on her daughter's forehead.

"Go enjoy yourself with Grace, Sweetie," Teresa whispered. Christina frowned, but nodded and grabbed my hand again. I smiled at Jane, knowing the two of them would come closer since I knew what he had to say, up to an extent at least.

"Don't kill each other," I joked, but Teresa didn't take it well. She now looked at me, angrily, and forcefully pushed Jane into the direction of his mansion.

When the two adults were inside, Christina squeezed my hand and I looked down at her.

"Who was that man?" she asked, her voice small. I shook my head. I didn't want to tell her if Teresa wasn't ready to tell her own daughter still. Don't get me wrong, I do think a child deserves to know who his/her parents are, but Christina was just seven. I didn't even know if she knew that biological parents could fight and hate each other.

"Mommy will explain it one day." I looked at the house once more, then pulled the girl with me to the Mashburn Mansion.

I just hoped that Teresa wouldn't kill Jane as he was trying to tell her what he had to tell her.

-YulianaHenderson-

Teresa returned after one-and-a-half hour, looking majorly distressed and if her red eyes were any indication, she had cried.

I had tried to entertain Christina by trying out beautiful hair-styles, but she had heard the front door open and had ran off to check on her mother.

Teresa refused to talk to anyone except her daughter, and even if she did, she didn't talk about Jane. Which, in a way, worried me. I knew what Jane had to say and what his thoughts were about the whole matter, and I knew that, in most situations with most people, he should've been forgiven already.

However, I couldn't read anything out of Teresa's expression except for the fact that she was obviously upset – but I couldn't figure out what this meant for their relationship.

She had thanked me for looking after Christina, and had apologized for ruining our shopping day. I didn't think she needed to apologize since this wasn't any of her fault, but it still helped a bit that she had said that. At least then I could tell her that it was my pleasure to look after Christina for the entire morning.

When Teresa had instructed for me to go with Johanna and Christina to the city center, I had refused. This was Teresa trying to make up for what she considered her own fault, and I didn't need that. I was here for _her_, not for the city or the shopping.

Maybe she had offered this to avoid being stuck in a house with me for the entire day. Not because she hated me, obviously, but because of the questions I could ask her.

What did Jane say?

Do you agree on that?

Will you give 'you' a chance again?  
And if so, are you going to tell Walter?

No. I understood why she didn't want to face me. But honestly, I wasn't going to ask any of these questions. In fact, I was just going to make small-talk for the rest of the day until Christina returned and Teresa would probably demand a little show to show her the clothes she and Johanna had bought that day.

But just because I had planned that didn't mean that it wasn't highly awkward when Teresa and I were sitting in the living room in silence.

It was obvious she had cried, and with what I knew of Teresa, I figured that it would take a lot to make her cry. So whatever it had been, it had to be pretty big. And considering it had been Jane she had been talking to, it couldn't be anything good. I supposed I had to ask Jane about this that night.

I was actually the one offering to go out for a walk. It wasn't as though the environment was all that beautiful, but it wasn't bad. It was sure better than New York.

"Do you do that a lot?" I asked out of nowhere. No wonder Teresa didn't understand what I was talking about. I elaborated, "Giving Christina to Johanna so that both of them have a nice day but you don't include yourself in it?"

Teresa sighed, and pinched the bridge of her nose briefly. Then, she nodded.

"Yes, actually. I have that most of times. When I'm planning on doing something with Christina, there always has to be something that interferes with it and ruins all the plans."

No, I wasn't going to ask her what it was, I knew what it was. And I wasn't going to ask her to elaborate on the Jane-matter either. It was probably hard enough for her as it were.

"So you trust Johanna enough?"

"Of course I trust her enough." She sighed, and brushed her hair briefly. "Johanna has been with us since she was sixteen. Her father... sold her to Walter, in a way." She shook her head. "No, he just didn't want to have anything to do with her anymore, let's just keep it at that. I suppose it had to do something with the death of her mother a few weeks before she joined us." She sighed. "Walter hadn't liked her since she was very shy at first, and she did her job sloppy. But I couldn't blame her. Her parents had been rich and they hadn't seen the need in her being taught how to clean and be an actual maid. They assumed that she would be able to buy a maid when the time would present itself. Guess that turned out differently..." she murmured the last sentence, and then looked at me again. "I love that girl, Grace. Walter still doesn't agree with her being here, but I love her immensely. Like she is my own daughter, even though the age difference is just a few years." She smiled an almost devilish smile. "Walter is paying for her wedding." She chuckled, and I couldn't help but join. I didn't know why that was funny, but I presumed it had to do something with the fact that Walter didn't like Johanna, but still was paying for her wedding. That just had to be Teresa's doing.

We fell into a comfortable silence, before the nagging question just popped out of my mouth. "And what about Wayne?"

She narrowed her eyes at that question, but then just smiled dangerously. "Why would you want to know?"

My cheeks started to burn as I realized what she was inclining and I looked away. She chuckled and touched my arm briefly to make me look back at her.

"It's okay, Grace. He..." she hesitated a bit then. "He and Cho, they have been life-long friends. They were my neighbors when I was younger, and even though they were younger than me, we still managed to enjoy ourselves when playing outside. It was nice. And then when I heard that both needed a job, I forced Walter into the idea that two cooks are actually necessary. I just didn't want to tear them apart. They may act like they don't like each other, but they really do. And, for what it's still worth, they are both single."

She cast me a meaningful smile, and I rolled my eyes.

"I didn't come here to meet a man."

"You never choose to meet a man whom you fall in..." she let her sentence wander and didn't finish it. I suppose we both knew that she meant Jane now.

She hadn't talked about her feelings towards Jane yet. I could imagine why she did that, she wanted to protect her child, but the fact that she completely shut out Jane meant that she either hated him, which after this morning I didn't think was possible anymore, or she was still in love with him and was afraid to ruin her marriage.

"Teresa, be honest with me: do you still have feelings for Mr. Jane?"

Her eyes widened and for now, I knew enough.

"What? No! No! Of course not!" she exclaimed.

No, sure not. Because this sounded convincing.

"Grace, I'm serious, I don't have any feelings for him," she said, this time more serious. I looked at her for a few more moments, then shook my head.

"It's not just you that's hurting because of this, you know. I had to keep Christina's train of thoughts off the track of Mr. Jane for what like days."

"You didn't tell her yet?"

"No, of course not, that's not for me to-"

"Thank you, I'd like for it to stay that way."

"Teresa."

She groaned, and nodded. "I know! It's just... I promised Walter never to tell Christina what has happened between me and Jane."

I nodded my understanding, but all the while contemplated what she had told me. So she really was afraid that her marriage would fail because of this. And she really didn't like Walter, for if she did, she would say that she loved him and that that was the reason that she didn't want to tell Christina.

"Did you like your time with Mr. Jane?"

Her eyes widened again, then she closed her eyes and stopped walking. I saw the corners of her mouth curl up a bit, just an inch, if not less. It was obvious that she was imagining being with him, and it warmed my heart that it triggered such a pure emotion from her.

She wanted to shake her head, but I saw she couldn't. So the movement she made next was an awkward mixture of a dismissal and a nod.

She sighed, probably realizing she couldn't put up the pretense much longer.

"I did."

"And do you still enjoy being with him, even though it's not like it used to be?"

"I suppose."

"Are you still in love with him?"

"Yes." She seemed shocked by this confession, and covered her mouth.

"Hey, it's okay, Teresa."

She shook her head.

"No, it's not! I shouldn't be in love with him, I am married for Pete's sake but all I seem to be able to think of his voice, and his smile. I shouldn't think of that, I should think of Walter. He has saved me from my father, Jane didn't."

"That shouldn't make a difference, Teresa. The heart falls in love with whom they want to fall in love with, no matter if it's okay or not. And you just told me that it's okay to be in love with someone."

"But I can't leave Walter."

I frowned. "Why not?"

"He..." She swallowed. "He will break me." Before I had the chance to ask for an explanation, she continued. "My mother died when I was twelve. Car accident. My father's mental health spiraled downwards ever since then. Up to the point where he started to hit me and my brothers. Them less, me the most. And before you're going to ask, that was because represented my mother the most. I kept hearing that I was her splitting image." She took in a deep breath, realizing she was wandering off.

"It came to Walter's attention how my father was treating his children and took me away from there. I heard later on that my brothers had escaped and that my father killed himself." She swallowed again. "Walter tried to convince me that he took me in because he had fallen in love with me, but I couldn't believe him and I still can't. When I told him that I wasn't in love with him, that the love I felt for him was much like friends would feel, he hit me and swore that he would damage my reputation. Now, my reputation is not important to me per se, but it is for most people here. I don't know how he is going to ruin my reputation, but I'm sure it will be horrible."

She was silent then. I couldn't believe what I was hearing now. Walter had been blackmailing Teresa into loving him? What a first-class asshole.

"Teresa, don't you want to be happy instead of forced into a marriage-"

"I can't be with Jane, Grace. Walter will kill both of us."

"So what if he kills you? Don't you want to die happy-"

"I love your childish naivety, but that's not how it works in the real world, Grace. Love is not supposed to exist when you can have money."

"Do you really believe that?"

Teresa shook her head, but continued walking. I stared after her before starting walking as well.

"Teresa, do you really believe that? Do you really think that money is more important than love? Do you really want to live the rest of your life being unhappy with how it is right now? I understand that you want to safe your marriage, but it's not going to end well if you and Walter continue like this!" She wouldn't listen to me, though, just started walking faster and faster until she was almost running. Luckily for me, she didn't have long legs compared to mine and I was relatively fast in running in front of her to stop her.

"Teresa. Think of Christina. Who do you think loves her the most? Who is the man that actually _fights_ to see her, speak with her, if just for a few seconds. Who would do anything for her, even kidnapping her to play for her?"

"Grace, please, stop. I don't want this."

"It doesn't matter what you _want_. It's about what you _need_ to do. For your daughter. You and Mr. Jane created this mess and it won't go away by ignoring it. You created a beautiful girl and that's something you _can't_ ignore. Just think of what Christina is going to ask when she's old enough to understand it, when she notices something is wrong with Walter and the strange blonde man that she for some reason is never allowed to talk to. What are you gong to answer? That the blonde man is the man you're actually in love with but you thought money and reputation was more important than love?"  
Teresa swallowed and hugged her body with her arms. She was silent for a long time, causing me to feel like she was telling me to mind my own business and back out, which she _should_ have done, before she let out a long sigh and focused her eyes on mine again.

"What do you suggest I do?"

* * *

**A/N: Please, reviews are very much appreciated. It's more for me to know what you think of this story than having to have a lot of reviews for this story. That's not what this story has anyways, so okay. But please, REVIEW! ^^**


	4. Chapter Four

**A/N: Skipping the long excessive Author's Note and just continuing with the story. Sorry, though, that I disappoint you with this story. I'm just an aspiring writer, trying to be noticed.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

* * *

**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

**_Chapter Four_**

_"What do you suggest I do?"_

It went silent then. Yes, what did I suggest she should do? I wasn't sure. I had dove head-first into this problem and hadn't really thought things through.

I did know one thing, though.

"You should talk to Walter."

The breath caught in her throat, and she continued walking again.

"He will kill me."

"No, he won't."

Teresa sighed, and turned around.

"I love Walter. Despite everything that I told you here, I still love him. He cares about me. He raises Christina, even though she isn't his. He cares about both of us, I can't leave him. I appreciate you're going through this, for me, but it won't work. I love Walter, and I love Jane, and that's my own fault. It's all a mess and I can't do anything about it." She sighed, and looked down. "I have to fall out of love with Jane."

She raised her head to look in my eyes. "But I'll talk to Walter."

I nodded, feeling a bit of victory rise inside me. That was a start. I didn't expect Teresa to leave Walter now already, but at least trying to alter this sticky situation was better than nothing.

-YulianaHenderson-

Teresa slowly walked into the house, and I had already seen it coming. Knowing Teresa, even for the little time we've actually known each other, she would do everything to avoid this situation from happening. No matter what would happen, Teresa would always be difficult in handling her emotions.

Walter was home. It could be felt by the whole changed mood that hung around the house now. Where it had been cheery and light this morning, it wasn't now. It wasn't a negative change, not like it had been the first time, but it was a change nonetheless.

Teresa may have walked into the house rather reluctantly, she did walk up to Walter in a determined matter. I watched the man's reaction and wasn't surprised when I saw a bit of annoyance inside of them. There was also a warmth though, and when he pulled Teresa closer, much to her own surprise, I saw the love I had already suspected was there in his eyes.

He did love her. He simply showed it in all the wrong ways.

And now this situation was getting more and more complicated and I was getting the strong feeling that I had made a terrible mistake.

I knew Jane and Teresa belonged together, but then there was the Walter thing as well. If he still loved her, and really loved her the way I hadn't thought he would, then he wouldn't let her go. And Teresa wouldn't let him go either.

There really was no way to go around this.

I felt a slight pulling on my hand and looked where it came from – Christina was asking for my attention.

"Auntie Grace? What are you doing?"

I smiled at the little girl. Frankly, I didn't know what I was doing either.

"What are _you_ doing?"

Christina chuckled, and shrugged. "I had to get something for Johanna but I heard Mommy and Daddy talking. What are they doing? They never talk like that."

I grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the hallway. I had to grand Teresa some privacy with her husband, it was not within my right to eavesdrop and I had to prevent Christina from doing that as well.

"Let me tell you what, Chrissie. Why don't you go to your room and I'll be in shortly so we can do your hair?"

The girl raised her eyebrows at me. Obviously, she knew that I was hiding something. I supposed I had to make her forget this.

She shrugged and nodded. "Okay."

She turned around and jumped up the stairs. I sighed and looked at the closed door of the living room.

It was time for me to be a responsible adult and leave them alone.

Half an hour later, I had had enough of it and Christina had too. Instead of actually eavesdropping we decided we could go play in the garden – it wasn't like we could hear anything from there.

Well, we could. And it didn't take long before Christina had lost interest in the dolls in the garden house and was sneaking her way to the house to listen in on her parents' conversation. By the time she sat against the wall, out of sight of the people inside but underneath a window that was opened and covered with curtains, it was too late for me to stop her, so I decided to sit down next to her and make sure she didn't do more stupid things.

That was when I heard the two adults.

"Teresa, I don't want to lose you. I really don't. And especially not to that scumbag Ja-"

"Don't call him that, Walter, he's not worth it."

"No, you're right, he's not worth it. He's not worthy of your love, Teresa. Your love is much too precious for that. Don't let him win-"

"Walter!" It was quiet, suggesting they were either staring at each other or staring into nowhere. I heard a deep sigh.

"It's my fault. I fell in love with him."

It was silent again. Christina looked up at me with a frown. I knew that it wasn't possible for Teresa to lie about this anymore – Christina knew now.

"What do you want to do now, Teresa? Do you want to leave me?"

"Of course not."

"Then why did you want to talk to me? I see no other option."

"There is!"

"Oh? Enlighten me, Teresa. I would love to hear what other option you came up with."

"Don't be like this."

"Like what, Teresa?" It quiet again, and I heard footsteps, indicating Walter was walking around – I could already recognize Teresa's heels.

"I want you to choose between us. No, let me finish, Teresa. I want you to choose – me or Jane. This has taken too long already, we were stupid to think that this would last. I won't be angry if you choose him. Merely... sad and disappointed. But you have to choose, Teresa. We can't stretch this longer. Choose, or fall out of love with one of us. Or both, I don't care."

And then silence. Earth-shattering silence. Because even though nobody said anything, I knew everything had been said already.

Walter was making Teresa choose. And he wouldn't be angry if she chose for Jane.

That was the strangest thing I had ever heard. First he blackmailed her into marrying him and now he let her go – just like that?

Was this weird situation ever going to end?

"Auntie Grace?" Christina whispered, and I startled. I had completely forgotten about her. I quickly put my hand over her mouth to prevent her from saying anything more.

"Let's go," I whispered back and pulled her away from the wall. We quickly ran around the house to enter it at the front and then, when we were about to sneak upstairs, Walter exited the living room.

He seemed surprised to see me, but had a soft smile on – how did he even get that smile? It was probably a mask anyhow.

"Hello Grace," he said, absentmindedly, and moved into the direction of the kitchen. I stopped him.

"Everything all right?" I asked. He nodded, too quickly for my liking, but I let it slide. He didn't come across to me as being cruel, not like the other day when every small movement he made showed disgust and hate. He looked distracted, distressed even, and it didn't seem like he felt the need to pretend he was fine.

Teresa exited the living room with the same expression as Walter had had, and as soon as she saw me, she pulled me inside.

"How did it go?" I asked, feigning confusion. She didn't need to know that I knew more than she thought.

She raised her eyebrows at me, much like Christina had done, but then waved it away. As though she didn't feel at all like pretending – she wasn't the only one.

She made me sit down on the couch and then paced the floor, running frantic hands through her hair. When she turned back towards me, I caught the worry in her eyes.

"He wants me to choose."

I feigned surprise, and a quick look at her expression showed me she believed it.

"So? What are you going to choose?"

"I don't know!" She cursed a bit, hugging her body with her arms and started pacing again. "Dammit."

"What if you choose for Jane?" I started after a while. She stopped pacing and turned to me.

"What... what do you mean?"

I sighed and shifted on the couch a bit, making myself comfortable. "If you choose for Jane... what will change?"

She frowned deeper and sat down beside me. "Well... if I was with Jane I wouldn't be with Walter."

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, that much was clear. But what would happen with Christina?"

It hit then and Teresa swallowed, looking at her lap.

"I'm not sure what would happen with her. I don't think Walter would want to share custody of some sort-"

"She knows," I slipped without thinking about it. Her eyes widened and I already saw the tell-tale signs of hyperventilation in her body.

"Oh god. Oh no-"

"Teresa, it's not a bad thing-"

"Oh, it isn't? So my seven year old daughter knows that I when she was 'conceived' I loved two men and the man she thought was her father all her life isn't actually her father because of a stupid mistake I made? And I lied to her all this time? And-"

"Teresa."

She took in a few deep breaths and sat down. "She mustn't know. That's why I kept it from her."

I scooted closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder. She raised her head and I saw she was panicking.

"Teresa," I whispered gently, as if speaking to a younger child, "you are a smart woman. Jane is a smart man... up to a point. Christina would find out eventually, if she is ever to become as smart as you are, which she definitely will. Did you really think she wouldn't find out? That's a rather naïve thing to think, isn't it? I may be young but I do know that something quite as big as this can't be hidden. She would find out the truth, because she would _want_ to find out the truth. Stop denying the past. Walter gave you the chance to do the right thing. I can only say... think about your daughter, Teresa. What kind of future would you want her to have?"

Teresa shook her head, then ran a hand through her hair, like she almost seemed to do when she was stressed out. Fact was, I did that too, so for some reason that was a family trait – even if we weren't all that close family.

The curtains blew away from the windows, a cool breeze running through the room. Teresa fought her shiver and succeeded well.

"I can't decide now," she whispered, her voice uncharacteristically weak. She took in a short breath again, and straightened. As she continued speaking, her voice was stronger again. "I can't decide now. I'll think about it... but I can't make a decision right now."

"And nobody expected you to, Teresa."

She stood without another word and left the living room. I was left feeling slightly guilty but that couldn't be helped.

-YulianaHenderson-

A few, strange, days later, Walter announced he would be having a party at the mansion.

I wasn't sure why he was doing this, though. It could be different things – his love for Teresa and the need to protect her, showing people that he could in fact still take care of her, or the fact that he really didn't care and merely wanted to show off with his money and wealth.

I suspected it was the first thing but I didn't have physical evidence so I couldn't prove it. I had to talk to him.

And that was why when we for some reason were left alone in the kitchen I stopped him from leaving.

He raised his eyebrows and looked at me with curiosity.

"Grace. Do you need something from me?"

"I know about Christina and Jane."

He nodded, not surprised. No one seemed to be surprised by the fact that I knew – it was as though they expected Teresa to break and tell someone. Which, in itself, was a big mistake since I knew how strong Teresa could be.

"I figured as much. The question is why you are talking to me about it. I can't recall giving you permission to talk about that topic."

"You didn't."

"Good."

"I gave myself permission."

Now he seemed surprised. He stared at me for a few seconds, before averting his eyes and staring into nowhere the same amount of seconds he had at me.

"I loved her. I gave her my all and she turned it down... for _him_."

I nodded my understanding. To be honest, never once had it crossed my mind how Walter could have felt about Teresa's little mistake. I always assumed Walter was a cruel man and I knew that this was _my_ little mistake – but one that couldn't be forgiven that easily.

"I know I'm not the right man for her... that was why she turned to Jane. But somewhere, deep down, I still _want_ to be that kind of man. The kind of man she deserves and needs. _Wants_."

"She still wants you-"

"No, she doesn't."

I rolled my eyes softly. Was there _anyone_ that would act reasonably and not like a four-year-old? "She does though. She immediately told me what kind of choice you gave her days ago and she also told me that she would choose for you."

His eyes crossed mine again and I could see the genuine surprise.

"She said that?"

"Yes, she did. Look, I know this is hard on you, on all of you, really. But a little advice from me? Don't let it wander around. You, Teresa, _Jane_, might be able to cope with this, but Christina is just _seven_. She won't even understand that you are not her real father. How is she supposed to fathom that her mother is in love with someone else? And that everybody is making a big fuss out of it?"

When he was about to interrupt me, I interrupted him instead.

"I'm not here to change anything or to stick my nose into your business – I know I'm too late with that – but I am merely trying to help. Think of the future you want to give Christina. It can't be true that you do not love that little girl, even a bit. I know she's not yours but you can do this as last good action."

He sighed and averted his eyes again. I saw that this situation was weighing down on him, more so than I had suspected at first. There were now bags under his hazel-colored eyes, and they weren't there when I had arrived. His shoulders were slumped a bit in an uncomfortable angle, and if the bags hadn't been any indication already, then you could see in the way he breathed that he was tired.

"You want this to be over too." It wasn't a question, merely stating facts, but he seemed relieved someone picked up on _his_ feelings for once.

"I don't want to lose her, don't get me wrong. I still love her, with all my heart. But this... this marriage we have... it's not working. Believe me, I hadn't thought at first that I would care about this as much as I do now... but I do care now. _I_ won't be the one with a bad reputation if we decide to end this. Teresa is. And I don't want that to happen."

"_If_ she were to choose for him, then she'll be in fine hands too."

"I know. But Grace, her reputation," was all he said. As though that would make great sense – and yes, it did. I understood his position. He was the one deciding the reputation of his wife. If they were to get a divorce, she would be shunned by most people. They wouldn't understand her motives, the only thing they would understand was that she must be a lousy wife, if Walter Mashburn would divorce her. No need for her looks then, that wouldn't help her anymore.

I sighed.

"I appreciate that you want to help, Grace, I really do. But I'm afraid this has been going on for too long to be helped. I gave her the choice now-"

"You've got a choice too in this, Walter. You can show her what kind of life you want with her-"

"The fact that she's living here is enough showing from my side."

"Are you serious? You don't love her enough to actually _show_ it to her? You're fine with her being unhappy? Look, I don't want to tear her away from you, if that's not what neither of you wants, but you do have to admit that Teresa isn't happy the way it is now."

He nodded.

"Then what do you want to do about it to change it?"

Then, it went eerily quiet. He went from staring at me to staring outside while leaning against the kitchen counter. I could hear the wheels churning in his head, and it was a good thing because now he was finally thinking about the life he wanted to give his wife. Instead of merely assuming everything would be alright if he simply ignored it long enough, he now realized what he was causing and what he was doing to not only himself, but his family as well.

"I want her to be happy," he said softly, and I nodded, though I knew he wouldn't get to see it due to him not genuinely looking. "We need some time apart."

And I knew he wasn't talking about not sleeping in the same bed anymore.

-YulianaHenderson-

Walter's party still remained, though I think that the reasons did change. Now, this party was more for the outside world to think that everything in the Mashburn family was going alright while everything had changed.

Teresa avoided Walter, which in itself wasn't a good thing if Walter hadn't been avoiding her too. They were doing the awkward dance and it did not lie well on my heart to know that I was the cause for that. But things only had to get worse before it became better, I told myself, and knowing that Teresa was really contemplating what to do with her future, I knew it would end well. Only time would tell though who she would choose – right about now, I hadn't the foggiest. She was awkward with both of them.

Now that Walter and Teresa were back to being the awkward parents, Christina didn't suspect a thing. And that was definitely a good thing because she was a happy girl again. I was sure she wasn't aware of what all the terms that came to my mind when thinking of Teresa's situation meant, but that didn't mean she couldn't be affected by any of it. She would suffer just as much as the three adults would, even without a basic understanding of such things.

Jane kept a reasonable distance from Teresa as well, though he had attempted more times to get her attention. She would brush it off with a small wave or a little smile. The best thing about Walter's changing attitude was that he allowed Jane to see Christina, if just for less than a minute. That didn't mean that Walter agreed on it, I was sure it was some pushing on Teresa's side to allow this to happen but it was a beautiful thing nonetheless. Jane really cared about that little girl, more so than Walter could ever fake.

Okay, both men cared about her.

It really was a difficult matter.

The only people not happy with the change was the staff.

Wayne and Cho were unfazed – Johanna a little less. She openly showed her disgrace over what I had done. She even told Christina about it, who in her turn told me. I didn't know why Johanna didn't want the change. Maybe she was afraid of losing her job, maybe she liked the way Walter and Teresa had been dancing around the subject for seven years. I couldn't imagine it but then again, I didn't know the girl all that well. Who was I to draw conclusions?

Luther wasn't sure about the changes either, but I suspected Johanna changed his mind on that matter. I had talked to the man a bit more than I had done to Johanna, more because she spent a lot of time with Christina, so I did think I had more insight into his character. Frankly, he didn't seem the man who had such feelings over things like this, perhaps because he was still so young, so it seemed unlikely that he had come up with such a strong opinion.

Now that I thought about it, Wayne wasn't happy with it either. I wasn't dumb, I saw the way he looked at mainly Walter – it appeared the younger man was very protective over Teresa, and so was Cho. No wonder with the trio's shared history. Yet Wayne tried to mask it, and I knew why. I didn't want to admit it but I suspected he had a crush on me – adorable, but not helpful while I was working on something quite this big. I had more important things to do.

So all in all, the only staff-member that seemed okay with it was Cho. Although he rarely shared emotions so perhaps he wasn't happy with it either.

I sighed as I stared into the neighborhood from my house. Jane was outside, like he always was these days. I thought he was trying to get Christina's attention that way, by merely showing her he was there to talk to or to play with, and a lot of times, it did work. Not today though.

It was a strange situation, and with Walter's upcoming party, I knew it was about to get ever weirder. There was no time for that, though. Teresa had demanded I accompanied her to the city to help her with some preparations for the party, but in my turn I demanded that she took Johanna and Christina with her – I had nothing to do there anyhow.

So instead I was giving the household some time to calm down by sitting in my temporarily house and staring at Jane who made some futile attempts to get Christina's attention.

When he was about to go inside, I didn't hesitate any longer and ran outside. He smiled when he saw me – and it hit me in that moment that I hadn't talked to him at all in the past few days. The only time we actually talked was that first night when he had come to my house and had told me that Christina was his.

"Grace, dear, care to elaborate on why you're not accompanying Teresa to the big city?"

I shook my head. "She needs some time off. The only thing I caused her is pain and confusion, she deserves not having me around."

He smiled even brighter, and nodded. "I certainly agree. It can be tiring to be around me too, although I don't feel that problem myself."

I rolled my eyes. He stepped aside and extended his hand to his house.

"Well then, care to accompany me for some tea?"

"Of course."

Once inside, I was shocked at the interior of the house. While the outside suggested that this was a rather historic building, the interior was by far historical. To be quite fair, it looked out of other times – modern, futuristic.

"You may close your mouth, Grace."

I startled and slammed my jaw closed, trying not to show that that very action hurt. He chuckled and waved at the couch, on which I sat down.

He went to make some tea. He didn't sit down with me while the water was boiling, he waited until it was completely done before pouring the hot liquid into elegant teacups and bringing it to where I was sitting.

"Tell me, Grace," he started, while adding just the right amount of milk and sugar in his own cup. "Why do you bother trying to get me and Teresa together?"

I shrugged, and picked up my cup. I blew at the tea for a few seconds, before focusing on Jane again.

"My... parents. They don't have a happy marriage either. It's not escalating, they will stay together, I'm sure. But it affects me, and all other people around us. I suppose I wanted to spare everybody here that same fate before it was too late."

He nodded, understandingly.

"But why bother, Grace, when you know it's beyond repairing?"

"It's never beyond repairing, Jane. You can always fix things. Christina is just seven. You can't leave her in a relationship that will destroy her. And what Walter and Teresa are doing right now is slowly destroying her. I don't want it to happen."

He nodded again, sipping at his tea. He leant back until his back hit the couch, then crossed one leg over the other.

"What did you tell Teresa?"

"A lot."

"No, I mean, what did you tell her about what she should do?"

I took my time answering that. Frankly, I hadn't done all that much on that field. I had told her that she should reconsider her situation but that was about it.

"Not much."

As though he had read my mind, he shifted topics.  
"Have you seen Walter changing his behavior around Christina?"

I startled, and stared at him for a while, before I got back my composure and answered.

"He is friendlier towards her, yes."

He sighed quietly, but masked it by sipping his tea once again.

"He is playing a game, Grace. You may not see it, but he is. He is trying to be the perfect father for Christina, so that it will become easier for Teresa to choose – for _him_. Well, that game can be played by two because I will do just the same."

"I understand, Jane, but don't get all obsessed. Maybe you got your wires crossed? Perhaps Walter is indeed making it easier for Teresa to choose, but for _you_ instead of him? He is showing that he is reasonable enough."

"But I know him. He is the same man that made me move to the other end of the neighborhood to see my child growing up without me. Grace, he hasn't changed. He's still that person-"

"How would you know, Jane? Have you talked to him? Have you looked into his eyes while he was holding Christina or Teresa close? Have you ever realized that maybe, just maybe, he _does_ love them? Teresa stays with him for a reason, Jane, just think about that."

Then, it became quiet. Eerily quiet. The kind of quiet I had witnessed when Walter was trying to come up with a solution for this mess.

Jane had lost attention for his tea, the cup still in his hands but as minutes passed, the tea lost its steam and it cooled down until I knew it would be cold. He was staring at me, unadulterated sadness radiating from his eyes and I had to look away a couple of times to cope with it.

After about ten minutes, he pulled himself out of his trance, put his cup down on the table and looked at me again.

"I was hoping that wouldn't happen," he whispered, and that threw me off guard. I had suspected he would pull up his walls but instead, they were blown to little pieces. "I was hoping that Walter would stay the way he was and that Teresa would realize that he life was with me and not with him."

He took in a deep breath.

"It will only become harder for me this way."

I took a few seconds to make sure he was done, then I spoke again.

"Maybe you should take the focus off Christina and onto Teresa. Walter is only focusing on your daughter but that leaves Teresa all on her own."

Jane's twinkle appeared again, and slowly, the outsides of his lips curled up into a small smile.

"You are a genius, Grace."

He picked up his cup and threw the tea back in a few big gulps. He pulled a face at the temperature of the beverage but didn't complain one bit. He got up radiating the biggest beam of hope I had ever seen on a human being.

"I'm going to win her back."

* * *

**A/N: I've got most of the story finished, only trying to make an Epilogue, but just so you know, I am finishing this. Let me know what you think in a review, thank you!**


	5. Chapter Five

**A/N: I'm really losing interest in this story myself, even though I've finished writing everything now. Hope you still have enough interest to keep on reading!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

* * *

**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

**_Chapter Five_**

Barely a day later, I saw the situation escalating already – Walter's focus was on Christina, which in itself was a good move, considering the little girl was very dear for Teresa. Jane's focus was more on Teresa herself, and neither of the men cared about their actions anymore. They both fought to have Teresa and Christina for themselves and nothing was wrong any longer.

In _their_ eyes. Because I saw Teresa didn't enjoy one second of this all.

She waved it away though with a brisk flick of her hand and didn't comment on it, but I saw it hurt. She chose to focus on Walter's party instead, and that was a good idea.

Walter's party. I knew that there was a possibility that a greater part of this problem could be solved by then, and I was therefore greatly looking forward to that night. So long as everybody was happy you couldn't hear me complain.

Walter and Teresa had once again decided that moving around the subject for Christina's sake was better, but I wasn't so sure about this decision. Obviously, I couldn't question their motives, it wasn't my call, but nevertheless I couldn't help but pick up on the subtle signs that she wanted to know. But I wasn't the one to tell her so I wasn't about to do it.

It didn't go unnoticed that Jane threw every accord he might have had with the Mashburns into the wind. He dropped by their mansion, claiming he wanted to see Christina but secretly, he just came to talk to Teresa. Poor fellow, though. Even though he was more or less allowed to see Christina now, he still had to watch how Walter slowly won the fight – and the girl. In this case the girl being Teresa. I hoped he would hang in there a little longer because I knew that Teresa would budge eventually. He merely had to have a bit more patience.

Speaking of Jane, I heard a knock on the front door and when nobody went to open it – I only noticed now that Johanna and Teresa must be in the city again – I skipped to the door and turned it.

Jane was standing on the porch with an anxious expression but that disappeared when he saw me. He sighed.

"Teresa isn't in, is she?"

I bit my lower lip and shook my head.

"I'm afraid not. She said she needed some more things for the party."

He nodded. "Okay."

He wandered a bit more, and now that the sole reason that he wanted to get into the house was gone, I wasn't sure why he was still here. He turned to leave, but as I almost closed the door, he stopped me.

"Is Mashburn home?"

I smiled faintly and stepped aside to let him in. I immediately heard small feet on the stairs and when my smile widened, so did Jane's.

"Chrissie!" he exclaimed and the little girl chuckled.

"Hi Patrick! My Mommy isn't here."

"I know, Chrissie, Auntie Grace told me. But I'm actually here to talk to... to your father." The last words were stammered and I swallowed as I realized it must be tough to utter these words while you knew _you_ were a child's father.

Christina frowned. "Why do you wanna talk to my Daddy?"

"I need to discuss a few things with him about the party."

"Are you coming to the party too, Patrick?"

He smiled, and nodded. Christina let out a small shriek and Jane chuckled. She snatched his wrist and mine and pulled us into the direction of the stairs, causing me and Jane to bump into each other.

Ouch. Christina didn't seem to be interested in our pain though, but simply chuckled and skipped up the stairs.

Jane rubbed the sore spot on his head while I did the same, my face probably a deep shade of red.

"You okay?" he asked gently, and I nodded.

"At least I can't get a concussion, I need a brain for that," I murmured, not aiming to be funny, but Jane's eyes twinkled and then he laughed, throwing his head back and that was when I noticed why Teresa was still fighting for him. He had this humane vibe, something I hadn't felt around Walter yet. Jane was a real person.

His laughter died down after a few seconds and I was left light-headed. Despite how much I wanted to be objective and not pick a side, I believed I just had.

-YulianaHenderson-

It turned out Christina had wanted to show Jane and me the clothes her mother had gotten the day prior. I wasn't sure whether Teresa had really picked that dress or if it had been Johanna but for now, I was okay with believing Christina.

She had put on the dress while Jane and I were talking a bit about nothing important, and when the little girl had exited the small dressing room linked to her bedroom, I had felt my smile widen.

She was wearing a light pink dress. It covered her shoulders with sleeves that well reached her elbows, not tight but a bit loose hanging. The dress ended beneath her knees, a little lace ribbon sewn onto the edges. The same kind of ribbon was wrapped around her small waist, tied on her back in a rather messy matter but she probably couldn't do that properly on her own. Tiny glimmers were sewn onto the dress in the shapes of beautiful flowers.

When I was done examining the dress, I quickly looked to my left to see what Jane thought. I didn't know what I was expecting but miniscule tears in his eyes was not one of them, I was sure. I swallowed, and apparently it could be heard, as Jane turned his head to look at me.

"Do you like my dress, Patrick?" Christina asked. Jane lurched his head back to the girl and nodded frantically.

"It's beautiful, Chrissie. You're like a princess."

She blushed and turned to take off the dress but Jane stopped her, jumping up and wrapping his arms around her. She let out a tiny shriek and started squirming in his arms violently. As Jane lifted her into the air, spinning her around a few times, I sighed quietly.

I granted Jane this little girl. Whatever Teresa chose, she couldn't possibly choose to refrain Jane from seeing this beautiful girl again. _His_ beautiful girl. Because that couldn't be changed – she was Jane's and not Walter's.

It didn't surprise me that Walter had to be the person to ruin the perfect moment.

"Oh, hi Jane."

"Walter."

Jane slowly put Christina down, but she didn't release him, wrapping her arms tightly around his body instead. Walter and Jane's eyes crossed, and the blonde man swallowed, gently pushed Christina away from him.

"I wanted to speak with you about the party," Jane said, calmly, but his voice didn't lie. I heard the panic, even though it wasn't easily heard for other people.

Walter nodded, and his eyes flashed to Christina for just a hundredth of a second – enough though for me to pick up on it.

"Christina, do you know how you want your hair for the party?" I asked, in a futile attempt to ease the tension. The men noticed, though, and so did Christina. She reluctantly moved away from Jane, and I wondered why that was. Well, actually I didn't. Jane was much friendlier to her than Walter was and that was the only thing that counted for children her age.

She shook her head and walked into my direction, and the two men got the hint. They walked out of the room and I heard them walking down the stairs. In my offense, the sigh of relieve I let out was legit. They looked as though they could kill each other.

I understood why Jane wanted to talk to Walter, though. He wanted to come back into his good graces for as much that was possible. They would never like each other much, after all, they basically shared one woman but that didn't mean they couldn't try. And they did want to try. Because they wanted to impress Teresa as well.

I sighed again and looked at Christina, who was watching herself in the four foot high mirror. She was making a few spins and turns, then bowed down as though she was a princess. After a minute or two, she turned towards me with a 1000-watt smile.

"Patrick thought I was a princess," she said, then chuckled and turned back to the mirror. The smile that crept into my features in that moment was completely involuntarily.

"Yes he did."

Christina was too happy with Jane's opinion for my liking. She bonded really well with him and they had gotten close in a mere few days, up to the point that Jane now knew some things about her that I didn't. It gave me a double feeling, really. On one side, I was happy for him. He got to spend more time with his daughter and he got to impress her mother as he went along. But it was dangerous to bond with her. If Teresa would choose for Walter, I was sure they would want to have full disclosure and the probability of them cutting all ties that connected Jane with Christina was high. Perhaps that was why it was of top priority that Teresa chose Jane instead of Walter – just for the sake of Christina. Because now she cared about Jane as much as he did about her, which would hurt her feelings if they were to be split up. I refused to let that happen.

"So honey, what do you think about Patrick?" I asked as I went about to braid her long dark hair. She squirmed a bit on the low chair, obviously she wasn't used to sitting still for such a long time but she had to be prepared for it either way. Now it was just for fun but if she really wanted someone to do her hair for the party, she genuinely had to sit still for so long.

She shrugged, one strand of curls sliding over her shoulder to the front.

"He's sweet."

I nodded, crossing one strand of hair while keeping the other two in place.

"He thought I was a princess."

I chuckled. Christina's expression was a picture.

We were quiet again after a while, Christina attempting to get comfortable in the chair but knowing it was completely futile.

"Christina?"

"Hmm?"

"Would you... mind, spending more time with Patrick?"

She was quiet, staring at her reflection in the mirror. Then, her eyes shot up to mine.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, would you mind spending nights at his house?"

She stared at me. I realized in that moment I had pushed it too far. She was just seven, she couldn't decide over such things yet. For goodness sake, she couldn't even possibly know what 'cheating' meant.

"Patrick isn't just Mommy's friend, is he?"

I startled almost violently. How could she know? Did I reveal Teresa's biggest secret to her daughter on a whim?

"I'm not stupid, you know."

I sighed and pulled up a chair, sitting down beside her and turning her chair so she was facing me.

"I know you're not stupid, Chrissie." I took my time choosing my next words. It was possible I was now going to reveal more than Teresa wanted me to.

Well, in for the penny, in for the pound. Christina was going to find out anyway and knowing Teresa, it would be too awkward if she told her own daughter. Frankly, I was simply doing her a favor. In a few days, she would understand why I had acted the way I had. Sometimes, you had to be a bitch to accomplice things, where you also sometimes had to be too nice. A little bit of bitch inside of the nice, a little bit of nice inside of the bitch.

"You know that Wayne has a girlfriend, right?"

"Yes. Sarah."

"And you know he has a crush on me."

She nodded.

"Well..." I took in a deep breath. "It's a bit like that. See, imagine Mommy is Wayne. The girlfriend would then be your Daddy, and then I would be Patrick. Do you see that, Christina?"

She nodded, but not without hesitating. I sighed quietly. I was _history_.

"Sometimes, Mommies and Daddies just can't be happy together anymore, and then they want more. Because Daddy might not kiss the way Mommy wants him to kiss her, or the other way around. I know it's strange, Christina, and it shouldn't happen, but it happens sometimes."

She nodded, again reluctantly.

"So... so is Mommy kissing Patrick?"

"Yes, she is. Well..." No, that was too difficult. I was going to leave it like this. She wasn't going to comprehend why Teresa and Jane broke up then.

"But... but doesn't she love Daddy anymore?"

"Of course she still loves your Daddy, very, _very_ much even. But..." I leaned closer, and whispered the rest of my words. "But I think that Patrick is a better kisser."

Christina chuckled completely involuntarily. Then, she stopped and took a few moments to take in what I had told her. It must be hard to fathom for a girl her age, but she was doing well so far.

"Why doesn't Mommy live with Patrick then?"

"Maybe you should ask her that yourself, honey."

She nodded, and sighed.

"I think Mommy should be with Patrick," she said, already moving to turn the chair around.

"Why is that, honey?"

"Because I think too that Patrick is a better kisser."

I rolled my eyes and got up, continuing what I had been doing minutes ago, but the nagging feeling didn't go away. I had to confront Teresa before Christina would 'betray' me.

-YulianaHenderson-

I felt like throwing up. Teresa had returned with the biggest smile I had seen on her face since I had appeared her, and now I had to destroy whatever reason she had for being so happy by telling her I couldn't keep a secret.

There was no need in telling her the words though. One look at me seemed to tell everything. Her smile faltered, and she nodded slowly. Johanna picked up on it and wanted to take Christina with her, but Teresa shook her head and grabbed her daughter's hand.

"Come Chrissie, we need to talk," she said softly. Johanna seemed thrown off guard and shot me a rather dirty look, before nodding and going off to do some other tasks that did not include Christina.

Christina knew too what was going to happen. Perhaps the conversation we had had earlier that day had made her aware of what was happening around her. When Teresa had stolen a quick kiss from her husband, Christina had looked at them in sheer wonder. I had hoped that she wouldn't tell her mother but I didn't think she had said anything.

Teresa ushered Christina into the living room and I granted them this moment. Instead, I chose to go to the room I knew was where the two men had their little conversation. They had been inside for over three hours now, so either they had killed each other or had a reasonable conversation. And although I knew that they wouldn't go as far as to bash the other's head in, somewhere I still feared they would be fighting.

I gently knocked on the door, and I waited for more than a minute, then the door opened and Walter's face showed up.

"Grace."

"Teresa sent me to ask if you were alright-"

"No, she didn't," I heard Jane saying from somewhere else in the room. "She doesn't even know I'm here."

A small smile crept on Walter's lips and I was completely confused.

Were they friends now, all of a sudden?

My confusion seemed to show on my face since Walter's smile merely increased, and he waved for me to get inside.

Jane was sitting on the sofa against the wall, teacup in his hand and a smug expression present. He did seem anxious, though.

"What... what have you been discussing in here?" I asked. Walter had in the meantime sat down behind his desk, leaning back into his lush-looking chair.

He shrugged. "There's only one thing we can discuss... without fighting much, that is."

"That's what you say," Jane added.

"Yes, that's what I say. And everybody else who knows about this."

Jane shrugged and sipped his tea. He seemed to hide himself in his tea – every time it became too difficult, he would drink tea. Like his own personal cave he retreated in when he couldn't cope with the world anymore.

Walter sighed and looked at me again. "We were discussing them."

I nodded. I could feel the awkwardness floating around in this room as a fog. I swallowed to get rid of the irritation, but it only became worse, until I felt I was choking. Walter seemed to notice, and quickly opened his drawer, only to take out his personal bottle of scotch and pouring me a glass.

I thought about denying it, but he seemed genuinely sad when I hesitated, so I just smiled and accepted it. No way I was going to face Teresa, alone, _sober_. Not that I was planning on getting drunk, but it was the thought that counts. At least now I had some support in the form of alcohol.

"And did you come to an agreement yet?" I asked, still wandering through the room. Walter pointed at the chairs in front of his desk, and I took a seat, rolling the chair to a spot in the room where I felt I had the right sight on both Walter and Jane.

Both men shook their heads. I sighed.

"It's not a surprise we can't _come_ to any agreement, Grace. We've been turning around this for years. Believe me, I want it to be over but it is going to take a while."

Jane nodded his agreement. Well, they seemed to agree on this small thing.

I bit my lower lip. I wasn't supposed to be here. But just as the thought had crossed my mind, it disappeared. Ever since I had been here, things had been changing and not all of them were changing the wrong way. I had made it my goal to make these people happy, get them where they belonged, so I couldn't leave now.

"I..." I hesitated. Both men were looking at me expectantly, even Jane had given up the attention he had for his tea to listen to what I probably was going to say. Was it written on my face? "I don't mind taking in Teresa and Christina for a few days, if you want me to." I paused again, studied Walter's expression. "After all, you did say you and Teresa needed some time apart."

It was quiet then for a long time, and I swallowed the big pit of guilt that formed in my stomach away with the scotch, sinking the glass in one fluid movement. I felt the liquid burning down my gullet and welcomed it as the first summer breeze through my cold, lonely life.

"I suppose that's the best option," Walter agreed after a while. I nodded. From his corner, Jane became even quieter than he had been before. He did not move a muscle, and while Walter didn't seem to notice, _I_ did.

I looked at him. He was staring into nowhere, stirring his tea in the cup absentmindedly. I wasn't sure what was going through his head now, but I assumed it was something along the lines of realizing that Teresa and Christina would be closer to him this way. Considering the Mashburn Mansion was at a considerable distance from his house, mine was closer since it was next to it. I sighed. Selfish, selfish Patrick Jane.

"The problem is, Grace dear, that people are going to suspect things," Jane said, and I startled a bit. I hadn't suspected that he would say anything, had actually hoped that he would stay on the background and try not to interfere that much but here he was, making me realize all the flaws of my plan.

If I hadn't thought about these myself, I would've hit him afterwards for trying to tackle my advice.

Walter stood up for me, though. "We can say that they needed more time together."

"But they can do that somewhere else too, moving to the other end of the street won't solve anything."

"Christina cares about Grace and vice versa. I think that people will believe it. There's nothing wrong with talking to your family. Why do you even care? They're closer to you like this. Isn't that all that matters to you?"

Ouch. It was time for me to leave this room – the men had found something to argue about again. I quickly put my glass on the table and got up. Honestly, I don't think it would have mattered if I had told the two where I was going because I don't think they noticed that I left. They continued fighting even when I was standing on the hallway, and I sighed.

I slowly walked into the direction of the living room and discretely listened for some words. To my surprise, it was quiet inside. And I really wanted to know how Teresa and Christina were doing. So against all my principles – I had already broken them countless of times in the past few days – I gently pushed open the door.

I found Teresa sitting on the couch. And Christina was sitting in her lap, straddling her hips, her arms wrapped around her mother. Teresa had her face buried in the crook of Christina's neck. Both of them seemed calm, their bodies weren't shuddering and they weren't shaking either – so they weren't crying.

I regretted stepping into the room immediately, this was a family moment, mother with daughter, I shouldn't be there-

"Sit down, Grace," Teresa murmured against the skin in Christina's neck, and I startled. "No need to fret, just sit down, I've seen you."

I sighed and reluctantly sat down on the couch opposite the couch the two were sitting on. I stared at them for a little while. Christina didn't lift her head, didn't move to look at me, but Teresa did, over the shoulder of her daughter. I saw in her eyes that she was grateful, and that surprised me. I had thought that she would be genuinely angry, or at least sad or disappointed, but she didn't seem to hold any of these emotions.

"What are you thinking, Grace?" Teresa asked gently, rubbing Christina's back just as softly.

"I... I'm a bit surprised. I thought you would be angry that I told Christina before you did."

Teresa shook her head. She pressed a kiss to Christina's temple.

"I know myself a little longer than just today. I would have never told her, and I would never have been able to live with myself then. She knows now, kind of. I should be thanking you for being so... so..."

"Stupid?"

She rolled her eyes, and shook her head then. "No... for being so reckless, I suppose. Now Chrissie knows why I fight to keep Jane... here. Why he lives so close. Why me and... and Walter acted so weird the past few weeks."

I nodded.

"I'm still sorry, though."

She shrugged. "It's fine. Really Grace, it is." She waved with her hand, indicating I should come closer and I did, sitting down beside her and the little girl who was still being eerily quiet. Christina lifted her head though when she felt me closer, and I saw there was a small smile sprawled across her lips. It looked almost cheeky, as though she was going to say something not very nice, and as she opened her mouth I knew that was exactly what was going to happen. I prayed to God, it wasn't going to get me into more trouble.

"I told you Patrick was a better kisser."

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**A/N: Please, let me know what you think. Just a simple 'I love it' can do wonders, trust me. It may help with updating faster, though, just saying.**


	6. Chapter Six

**A/N: Almost there, people! If you're still reading this, THANK YOU SO MUCH. It seriously means the world to me!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

* * *

**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

**_Chapter Six_**

Christina chuckled, Teresa frowned and I knew for a fact that my cheeks had turned a deep shade of red.

"What did you tell her?" Teresa asked, slightly amused. I shook my head and averted my eyes, looking instead at the big painting of her and Walter on the wall.

"She said that Patrick is a good kisser!" Christina quipped, and mimicked kissing sounds that now made Teresa blush. When I looked at her, she simply started laughing. She fell back against the backrest of the couch, Christina still on her lap, consequently causing the little girl to now lie on her mother's chest, her head against Teresa's bosom.

"Well, he is a good kisser," Teresa said when her laughter had died down a bit, enough to be able to breathe controllably and without hiccups. She sighed, slightly wistfully.

"Do you know who you are going to choose yet?" I attempted. Teresa shook her head.

"No, but as soon as I find out, you'll be the first one to know, I promise."

I smiled softly. "I'm glad, but shouldn't your daughter know first."

"Knowing you, she will know either way as soon as you do."

My cheeks burned again as I rolled my eyes. "I'm sorry, okay, it won't happen again."

Teresa chuckled, and shrugged.

"Jane's here, isn't he?"

I became solemn. Yes, of course she knew he was, because she could probably feel his presence. Something that years later still wills you to fight for it couldn't be bad, could it? And they had a beautiful child from that little mistake, so really much to complain wasn't there.

I nodded. "He's in Walter's office."

She groaned. "They won't kill each other, right?"

"No, they won't. Maybe hurt the other, yes, but not killing."

She groaned again, and gently pushed Christina off her chest, getting up and almost running out of the living room. Christina followed her mother without thinking, and I felt I had to stop her before she would do anything stupid. So I ran after the two, and was barely able to snatch Christina's arm before she went into the room with Teresa.

"You're staying here, Chrissie."

"But I want to talk to Daddy and Patrick!"

"I know, honey, but let Mommy talk to them first, okay?"

She pouted, but stopped fighting me. She sighed and trotted over to the couch on the hallway that was located directly in front of one of the many big windows. I didn't sit down beside her, merely started pacing the hall up and down.

"What did Mommy tell you, Christina?"

She shrugged. "That my Daddy isn't my Daddy, but Patrick is my Daddy."

I nodded. "And what do you think about that?"

"I don't know."

I sighed, and decided to sit down beside her, if only so I could swing and arm around her small frame this way.

"I don't know what your Mommy said about any of this, but I'm sure that your Daddy will still be your Daddy, if you want him to. He still loves you."

"Does Patrick love me too?"

"Yes he does. In fact, every time I go home, he asks me how you were doing."

"Really?"

I nodded, and the girl's wistful expression disappeared a bit, to be replaced by a happy one. I could imagine that would cheer her up, after all, she really did care a lot about Jane. I wasn't sure what the revelation would do to her feelings for Walter and Jane but she was taking it well so far.

"Christina?" a soft voice asked, and we both looked up. Teresa was standing in the doorway, Jane now standing behind her. She seemed to ignore him but he didn't allow it, gently touched her shoulder. She waved for Christina to come inside and the girl did, skipping over to her mother, then Teresa motioned that I could come inside as well.

Who was I to deny any of this? I wanted to know if they had come to an agreement after all.

Jane turned around, his expression showing hurt as though he had burned his hand, by the way Teresa was acting. But in her defense, she wasn't paying attention to Walter either so he had nothing to be feeling sad about.

"Chrissie, we are going to stay at Auntie Grace's home for a few days."

"Really?" Christina exclaimed, already clapping her hands and bouncing on the couch she was seated on. An obvious involuntarily smile appeared on Teresa's lips as she nodded.

"We are going to focus on you, little one. It's going to be about you and not about any of us anymore. You get to choose where we'll live – with Walter or with Patrick. It's up to you, but if you don't want to choose, that's fine as well. And you'll get as much time as you need."

Christina looked from her mother to Jane to Walter, then back to Teresa again.

"I want to-"

"Not yet, Chrissie. At least wait until tomorrow. A lot has happened today."

Christina sighed, nodded although she was pouting. She then jumped up and ran towards Walter for a big hug.

Jane and Teresa's eyes crossed, and I could see it hurt for the blonde man. No surprise there.

Then Christina surprised all of us by pushing away from Walter and running into Jane, wrapping her arms around him the same way she had done with Walter.

Jane didn't bother with covering up the sigh of relief he let out. He bent his knees a bit and picked up the girl. He whispered something in her ear and although I was sure Teresa and Walter couldn't hear what he was saying, I read his lips.

He was telling her he loved her.

I saw Christina had made up her mind in that moment, but I decided not to comment on it. It was going to hurt for Walter either way, it was probable that he was going to lose both Teresa _and_ Christina now, and that couldn't be easy for him. Or perhaps it was, maybe I had made an error in determining his character after all.

Teresa gently touched Jane's shoulder, and he reluctantly put down Christina. He turned towards Teresa and sighed wistfully, then nodded and left the room.

When he was gone, everybody was eerily quiet. Not a word was uttered, even Christina wasn't producing any sound. That changed when she, after a few long moments, ran after Jane. Teresa was just in time to stop her.

So it was settled then. If Teresa would let Christina choose for her, which in my opinion was a weak move but perhaps it _was_ the only option she had, she would come back together with Jane. I hoped Teresa realized this now – Walter didn't stand a chance, which was unfair, but it wasn't my call.

-YulianaHenderson-

Teresa busied herself with helping Wayne and Cho cooking. She was good at it, I had to admit, and as I studied her movements, I saw she enjoyed doing this. It was unmistakable though that she did this solely to forget about the whole Walter/Jane matter.

Wayne and Cho were in the kitchen now, and Teresa went to get something when I pulled her aside.

"Are you and Jane being intimate?"

She couldn't have been more surprised. She actually gasped at my question, but I had to know. I had to know what drove her to the decision she had made.

"No, we are not," she said, determinedly. I made her turn around, so that I could look into her eyes when she was lying to me, but I found she wasn't. She was telling me the truth, and I hadn't seen _that_ coming. Well, there went the whole theory I had come up with.

"No, Grace, we are not," she said. "I'm not making that same mistake again, even if I decide to choose for Jane. Now that I'm still married to Walter, I'm _not_ sleeping with Jane. I'm not even kissing him, or hugging him, or doing anything friends won't do-"

"I understand, Teresa, calm down."

She sighed.

"I don't know what to do," she whispered, and I heard the panic in her voice, even though she desperately tried to mask it. "It doesn't feel right. It doesn't. I want to give Walter a chance as well, he's my _husband_, but every time I'm close to Jane I feel like I made up my mind already. I _know_ I want to be with Jane, but I _shouldn't_."

I looked at the kitchen, where Wayne and Cho seemed to be discussing something. I pulled her with me into the living room.

"You're in love with Jane," I whispered. It was not a question, and Teresa was more than aware of it.

"Yes I am. And now that I have to choose it just doesn't feel right anymore."

"But do you want to be with Jane?"

"Grace..."

"Just answer my question, Teresa. Do you want to be with Jane?"

She swallowed several times, and already moved to walk away, but I stopped her.

"Teresa-"

"Yes. Yes, I want to be with him. I want to choose for him."

"Then what's the problem?"

"My _marriage_ is the problem. It may not look like it but I'm actually the loyal kind of person."

"Why did you cheat on Walter?"

"I'm going to help in the kitchen-"

"No, Teresa, you're not. This is the source of the problem and we need to get rid of the source so that the problem can go as well. Wayne and Cho will manage on their own, that's what you hired them for."

Teresa stamped her foot on the floor angrily, making her look like a stubborn child, before she ran a hand through her hair and angrily walked over to the couch, sitting down.

"Dammit Grace," she muttered, then straightened and started explaining. "When Walter and I got married, I was in love with him. I really was. Or I _thought_ I was. Because surely, if you're in love then you stop looking for other men, don't you? Well, I didn't, and it wasn't before... _Virgil_, of all people, made me realize that what Walter and I had was nothing special, it was not true love, that I began looking at our marriage differently. I know it was wrong, I should've stopped looking at that very moment, that would've spared both of us a lot of trouble, but I couldn't. I couldn't stop. I couldn't push away the thought that Walter didn't give me what I was craving. He was looking after me, alright, even though I _knew_ that he didn't do it from a genuine love perspective. He had specifically told me so. And then I met Jane, and the rest is history... I didn't mean for it to happen, I swear! But it just happened. And I would do everything to go back to that moment and just ignore Jane, not act on anything he was telling me. But he made me feel happy and loved, I hadn't felt like that my entire life. I was _so_ in love with Jane, Grace, you wouldn't even believe it... and then I got pregnant. And I was ready to shoot myself.

"Because I knew in that moment that that small hint of happiness that I had felt with Jane, that I would never get to feel that again. I knew that Walter would never forgive me. He interpreted it personally, quite understandably, of course, but he was _angry_. He reminded me of my dad in those moments. But I knew it was because he was afraid to lose me. I was the only stable factor in his life, the only person who genuinely cared about him, despite all our flaws in both our marriage and our personalities individually. We didn't belong together, but still it worked, up to a point, because I appreciated that stability in my life, and he did too. That security. _Jane_ didn't have that. Believe it or not, but at the time I became pregnant, he didn't have anything. Trust me, the house he's living in, he wouldn't have been able to afford that himself – that was all Walter's doing.  
"But the moment he got placed in that house... it was like he became a different man. It was as though he wanted to get revenge, for missing out on big chunks of his daughter's life. Because at that time, he didn't know for how long it would last. I think he had hoped that it would pass after a few weeks, or months. I don't think he thought it would last seven years." She paused, and I didn't dare interrupting her. She was facing the truth, it was important that she kept on talking.

"I saw him changing, Grace. Jane isn't the man he used to be anymore. He used to be carefree, youthful, full of joy. He's not that man anymore. And Walter changed too. It's all my fault. I'm a terrible person."

I shook my head. I sat down beside her on the couch and wrapped an arm around her frame, not caring if she liked this certain gesture. But judging by the way she placed her head on my shoulders, she didn't mind.

"You're not, Teresa," I whispered. "Of course I don't know all sides of this story, but to me it looked like you just wanted to be happy. Nobody can blame you for that, Teresa. Even if they say you didn't act the right way. There _is_ no right way when it comes to love."

"I don't want to hurt him," she whispered. I nodded.  
"I know, Teresa. I know."

That moment, Walter decided to walk in, and as soon as he saw the two of us, I could witness a switch being hit in his head, I saw the wheels churning and turning but not for long, as though he had been going about this for a very long time now.

"I want you to live together with Jane."

Teresa pushed away from me and jumped up.

"No-"

"Teresa, I've found someone else."

Teresa froze. It took a while before his words sank in. To be honest, I was shocked too. Was he genuinely doing all of this now? Was he acting indifferent? Glad to be rid of Teresa? After all he had told me about, after all the love he had shown for her? He had fought for her, dammit, but this wasn't the bitter end.  
"You're kidding, right?" I asked when Teresa had nothing to say. Walter's gaze switched from her to me, and he nodded.

"Well, I don't have someone else _now_, but I will _eventually_, I hope. Teresa, don't you see it? We don't belong together. I still love you, but a simple break up will destroy both of our lives. This way, I get to be the macho man that moved over you fairly quickly and you get to be the strong woman that learned to live with it as well and moved on too. And you _are_ strong. You can get over this, you can ignore what people say about our behavior. It was a mutual decision, and people will know that now. I know what you deserve.

"I want you to be happy, I don't want you to have any illusions about that, Teresa, my love. I love you, but not in the way I should love you, the way you deserve to be loved. The way your daughter deserves to be loved. I'm... not the father type, I'm really not, but I tried. She's amazing, Teresa, she's like you, but this is not the kind of life I had imagined for us. I didn't marry you just for your good looks, Teresa, despite what everybody might have told you, or despite what you might have thought yourself. I love you, and I have always loved you. I've shown it in the wrong ways, yes. I have hurt you plenty of times, but I was afraid of losing you."

He moved closer, gathered her in his arms, placed a kiss on the top of her head. Teresa's breath caught in her throat.

I could clearly notice the next words she whispered were heartfelt, but had to be forced out of her mouth.

"If you really want to give me what's best for me, then help me leaving you, Walter."

He nodded, kissing her forehead, over and over again, until Teresa couldn't stop the tears anymore, letting them fall freely down her cheeks.

"Don't cry, Teresa," he whispered. "This is not a goodbye. This is merely my gift for you – happiness. Something I could never give you myself."

"That's not true," she managed to choke out.

"It is, though. I gave you stability, security, money. Everything you wanted but it wasn't what you needed nor deserved. I think we both knew what you really needed – a baby. I could never have given you a baby, and you know that. Just promise me that you will be happy with him, Teresa. I hope I can trust Jane enough with you, with your life and with Christina's. Promise me you'll be happy with him."

She nodded, and wrapped her arms around his chest. She couldn't stop nodding. He wrapped his arms tighter around her, and whispered sweet nothings into her ear.

"Thank you, Walter," she managed to whisper, then she drowned in his embrace.

"Did we miss something?" And of course the moment had to be ruined by the oblivious workers in the Mashburn Mansion. Yet one look at the still-married couple showed me that they weren't about to explain anything, finding this moment too difficult to stop it.

-YulianaHenderson-

Nothing fundamental had changed over the next few days. I don't suppose anyone told Jane the news, and I didn't get the feeling that anyone was going to before the party.

I had heard Walter telling Teresa that the party was a sort of goodbye, but a goodbye from their marriage, since quite obviously, they were going to get a divorce rather soon.

The only one I knew for a fact they had told about their plans was Christina. The girl had been out of her mind with excitement, but unfortunately, she had to keep it quiet for just a few days more. Honestly, I didn't know why she was so excited. I assumed that at her age, as long as you were looked after and were given the idea that someone cared about you, it didn't matter where you were living. Apparently though, for her it did matter, and she'd rather live with Jane than with Walter – understandably so. When Walter had told Teresa he wasn't the fatherly type, he wasn't lying alright. Jane was a better father, or let me rephrase that: he actually genuinely cared about her, about her feelings and not just about her being there or what she might add to his reputation.

I felt Teresa was getting excited as well. Walter was letting her go, promising her not to make a fight and ruin her reputation any further, and he had even told her he would help save what little was left of her reputation. Not that she needed a reputation anymore, she didn't have to find a man since she had already done so.

I had regretted asking her if she and Jane had been intimate. I should've known that this was a probable trauma of Teresa, and she would never ever make that same mistake again. It was a shame I hadn't realized that before she had had a semi-breakdown.

But she was getting pretty excited, because she knew what was going to be in her future – being with Jane, the man she loved with all she had, the man she was in love with. The man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with – quite obviously not the case with Walter but I had seemed to have gotten used to this sudden change.

She reminded me of a giddy teenager in love – giggling uncontrollably at the most inappropriate times, staring into nowhere when she was most likely daydreaming, smiling like a loon for no reason at all. It was so not her that it made me smile from ear to ear – even the most controlled people could be taken off guard by true love.

I simply hoped she would tell Jane before he would do something terrible because of the long wait.

I had now completely changed my view on Walter, though. I still didn't know how I could have been so wrong with my assumptions, but it was the case, and I had genuinely apologized to him, even though I had never voiced any of these thoughts out loud. I had reacted biased and I never should have done so. He was a nice, loving man, not the family type but he obviously couldn't do anything about that – it was simply the way he was. I learned that very same day Walter announced that divorcing would be the best way to solve all of this that he was infertile – he had known from the absolute beginning that Teresa's child wasn't his. It was funny, how these kind of things happened to the people who weren't at all thinking about having children. Teresa might have wanted it, but if Walter couldn't get her pregnant... and I had learned that in the beginning, Walter had definitely noticed things going on between her and Jane but had simply allowed it – if Jane was able to give her that baby she so desperately wanted, then he had supposed he would have to sacrifice himself, in a way. He obviously hadn't figured she would actually fall in love with Jane. If Walter had in fact been fertile and had in fact been able to get Teresa pregnant, then this whole mess wouldn't have existed. But it was better this way – you couldn't change the past anyhow.

That was what I had told the three countless of times – you can't change the past. What's happened, happened. You can't alter it.

But I knew they weren't changing the past – they completely agreed with me on that point. They were simply changing the future.  
Walter's party was tomorrow. The whole mansion was freaking out to try and get the last things done. Jane was still oblivious – when me, Teresa and Christina went home the previous night, we had seen him secretly sneaking through the curtains to catch a glimpse of the two girls. Really, Christina had been so tempted to tell Jane, but Teresa and I had been able to stop her.

I really didn't get why Teresa wanted to let Jane wait this long, but I wasn't going to question it. Perhaps she wanted to make the moment in which she told him about her undying love for him special, wanted to make it matter. She obviously didn't want to make hasty decisions again for the rest of her life.

If Teresa wouldn't tell Jane the next day, though, _I_ would do it for her. And this would be different than telling Christina about the truth, since that was the past and the new, altered plans were the future.

I sighed. I was going to have to stalk the couple a little bit more to know if everything ended up well, but I was willing to do so. Honestly, the only thing I wanted to see was a little kiss and them admitting their love. That was it.

I hoped they would be able to give me that. Only time would learn.

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**A/N: Next chapter will be unofficially the last chapter, because after next chapter there will be an Epilogue, but I think we can establish that all of you know what will happen next chapter, right? It's the last chapter, people, and I can't stand ending stories on a negative, depressed note because seriously, I'm the fluffy kind of person so yeah, be prepared for some fluff - it's not much though, but it's still fluff.**

**Let me know what you think in a REVIEW, or a FAV or ALERT or whatever way you deem appropriate, just do it, it will mean everything to me and I will actually feel like this story is a good one. **


	7. Chapter Seven

**A/N: Yes, I admit: I wanted to get it over with. Just the Epilogue to go now!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

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**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

**_Chapter Seven_**

The day of Walter's party, and I could see most people had mixed feelings. By now, everyone had heard about Teresa and Walter's plan – but of course, everyone except for Jane.

When I had seen him standing in his house all alone I had been so tempted to simply tell him, but I supposed Teresa really wanted to keep it a secret so far. It wasn't my call, I knew that, but I wasn't the patient kind of person. I couldn't wait to see Jane's reaction when Walter and Teresa informed him of the news.

I thought it was stupid that they didn't want to tell him. Something quite as big as this couldn't be ignored – it was becoming the elephant in the room. It was as though they were falling back into their old behavior, only then with better solutions.

Walter and Teresa were getting closer, though. I saw their demeanor had changed – instead of Teresa kissing him when he had arrived home, she had hugged him, in a way in which I would hug her too. A friendly way. Walter hadn't looked sad with the change, he even looked happier. I had pulled him aside that morning, and had asked him what he was feeling.

He had told me that he was glad to have a friend like Teresa – which, consequently, gave Walter and Teresa a very odd marriage, if they considered each other good friends already.

The night of the party, and everybody was ecstatic. Johanna kept running around the house, correcting Wayne every time he did something she didn't deem appropriate. Luther kept looking at her with this look I recognized far too well, but I decided not to comment on it. After all, I still hadn't met Johanna's boyfriend, and anyhow, I had experienced far too much drama over the past few weeks than I would have wanted. Luther or Johanna didn't look sad or in a lot of trouble so I simply let them be.

Wayne's obvious crush had vanished a bit, though he still cast these distinctive glances at me. I still thought it was adorable, but we couldn't do anything with it. I was going to go back to New York in a few days, and unless he wanted to come with me, it would never work out. And I wasn't particularly looking forward to taking a stuttering mess back home.

"What are you thinking?"

I startled, and turned around, to find Walter smiling smugly at me. He knew I had used these exact same words that morning. His smile intensified when he saw I was blushing.

"Don't worry, I won't tell."

I sighed. I wasn't about to tell him what I was thinking about, I was never going to stop hearing it then.

"Rigsby?"

My god, could my blush become even worse?

"Yeah."

"I figured. He has been working for us for a lot of years, and trust me, I have never seen him as much in love as he is now. You should be flattered, he's a good guy."

I nodded, absentmindedly.

"So what are you going to do?"

"I don't know."

We were quiet for a few minutes, simply staring in front of us, when he sighed resolutely.

"I have made a lot of decisions yesterday, about me and Teresa." He paused, and shifted on the comfortable couch. "I'm going away for a while, just traveling. I need some time for myself, to get my thoughts straight. After I've signed all the papers, I'm leaving."

"Papers...?"

"Yes, Grace, papers. Divorce papers. Papers in which I give Jane custody over Christina." He chuckled softly. "Apparently, it was necessary even though Jane is her biological father."

He sighed, almost wistfully. "Eight years. I have been married to her for eight years, and I never realized what I was doing to both of us. I suppose I was too busy with gaining a reputation, with earning even more money. I was destroying us and I never realized it. Teresa is better off with Jane. I'm a horrible person."

I shook my head, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Whatever you are, a horrible person is not part of that, Walter. After all, you're doing the right thing now, aren't you? Stop being so hard on yourself."

He sighed, and I did too. We went quiet for a while again.

"Europe isn't that far away, is it?"

I chuckled, and rolled my eyes. "It is."

"Well, I'll be coming back eventually."

"I'm sure you will."

"Because I still love Teresa. Just not in that way."

I reached out and wrapped my arms around his neck, and he gave in with a long sigh.

"Is this really the right solution, Grace?"

I shrugged. "That's not for me to decide, Walter. Does it feel right in your heart?"

He nodded.

"Then it's the right thing to do."

He sighed. "I suppose so."

He kept my embrace for a little longer, his breathing calming down slightly, before he gently pushed me away.

"Thank you, Grace, for everything. You made me see reason again, and I can't thank you enough for it. I can't think anything other than that you saved us. Thank you."

I shrugged, but I heard the emotion in his voice. It was laced with feelings I hadn't thought I would hear in his voice, not even when I had realized that he wasn't a monster.

"It's okay, Walter."

He sighed, and got up. "Will we be seeing each other, Grace?"

"I'm not sure. I think I will go back to New York soon."

He nodded. "Jane and Teresa will probably live in his house, it will become his when I leave, he can afford it now. If you decide to stay, then you may keep the house, so you can live next to Teresa. I'll ask Jane to support you, financially, if needed."

With that, he left the hallway and walked into his office. Christina ran past, screaming and laughing, Johanna behind her, cursing.

A man strolled through the halls, an early party guest, I presumed.

Much to my shock, he walked up to me and sat down beside me on the couch.

"I'm impressed," he said, and I frowned. He smiled, and reached out his hand. "Virgil Minelli."

So the man turned out to be the only person in Teresa's life I hadn't spoken to, and if I could remember correctly, he had been the person trying to make Teresa realize that she was in love with Jane, and not Walter.

He smiled as he saw that I recognized him in a way.

"I gave up hope, to be honest. These two... it was unbelievable. I still thought they made a better couple than Walter and Teresa, but she was... a bit naïve. I'm glad you succeeded. Now I get to see her and Jane together."

He smiled brightly. "Teresa's like a daughter to me, all I wanted was for her to be happy. And I do feel she is now. Has she told Jane the news?"

I shook my head.

"No, I thought so. Well, she hasn't even told him but I can already see a change. It's good for her. I'm glad you saw it too."

I smiled, and nodded.

"I'm Grace-"

"I know who you are. Everyone does by now. You're Grace van Pelt, Teresa's faraway cousin or niece or something like that. I get it all, Grace, no need to explain it. You're her real family, and I am not-"

"Family is not only about having the same genes, Mr. Minelli. It's about with whom you feel loved and save. _I_ of all people should know."

Minelli's smile grew out of proportions, and he patted my knee.

"That's the spirit, Grace. Are you... are you leaving?"

Why was everybody so interested in this? It wasn't like anybody was going to miss me. I wasn't needed here, I had done my job, even though I had never intended to have this job in the first place. Fact was that I didn't see any reason for me to stay.

"She'll need you, Grace. She won't admit it herself, but she really does. Although I'm sure you've got a general insight on her personality, it takes years before you can figure her out."

"Try me."

He chuckled. "She won't talk about her feelings."

"I knew that."

"I know, it's pretty obvious. She won't admit she did something wrong either. She won't admit hurt, or defeat. And she's still a woman, even though she won't admit that. She's fragile, like a precious little bird, but she doesn't like being called that – trust me, I should know. All she ever wants in life is love, but ever since Walter made her stop seeing Jane as punishment, she accepted that she would never have love in her life. She's scarred beyond repairing, but of course, _she won't admit it_. She's not one to brag, maybe that's her faith as well. She's religious, she just hides her cross underneath her clothes. Perhaps that's the reason that she really didn't want a divorce, but she's seen reason now. If things get too personal, she will either hit you or completely shut down, which makes me wonder why she allowed you to intervene in her marriage." He sighed. "She's just a little girl, in a big cruel world that doesn't understand her. You have to stay, Grace, for Teresa's sake. Please."

I sighed, and leant back in the couch, resting my back against the rest.

"Why is it that everyone wants me to stay? I always knew from the beginning I would go back to the East Coast."

Minelli simply nodded, but didn't say a word.

"You're important now, Grace," he finally said. "People care about you. Everyone would respect it if you were to go back, believe me when I say that. But you were the person to push their life back on track. You saved them. In their existence, that's enough to love you for eternity."

"Eternity?"

"Nobody has ever tried to help Teresa out of her situation, other than me. Since she's... afraid of father figures due to what her real father did to her, she didn't listen to a word I said. _You_ are someone that tried to help her as well, and secretly, she enjoyed that you bothered with doing that. Nobody did before. And for little Christina, well, she just likes pretty girls."

I chuckled.

"Please Grace, stay. If only for a week or two more. She still needs you, you'll see."

"Fine, alright, I'll stay."

He smiled brightly, and nodded.

"I knew you would. Oh, do I hear Teresa demanding your help? I wouldn't keep her waiting, Grace dear, if you want to live."

The rolling of my eyes was completely worth it – this man was adorable.

And even though he had been quite absent in the time that I was here, I could see he genuinely cared about Teresa. He was just careful with her, because he knew how precious her soul was, and how close to breaking it had been days, weeks ago.

But she was doing better now, probably better than she'd even done in her life. She wasn't fighting with Walter anymore, and she had the prospect of returning to the man she loved, the man she had had a child with, the man she _should_ have married instead of Walter.

Speaking of Walter, I had the feeling I was the only one who knew about his plans to travel to Europe. And I knew for a fact that if Teresa heard about it, she would protest so badly... and there I had the reason that I was the only one who knew about it.

Oh, that sneaky bastard! He was going to let me tell a very angry Teresa _why_ he had left and to where he had left!

"Penny for your thoughts? Before you're killed by Teresa for letting her wait."

And I had completely forgotten about Minelli sitting next to me.

"I was just remembering something. Will you be at the party?"

"Of course. This is like Teresa's engagement party, but then without an engagement."

"It was nice meeting you, Mr. Minelli-"

"Oh Grace, that's too formal. You can call me Minelli."

I smiled. Yes, I liked this man.

I felt a small pulling on my arm, and when I turned, I saw Christina was standing there, her hair half-done for the party, her comfortable nightgown on instead of her pretty dress – but then again, her nightgown was pretty too.

"Hi Virgil," she said happily, and the man saluted her slowly, then the girl turned towards me again. "Mommy needs your help. She said it's about Patrick."

I could see she found it stupid, and I knew the girl wanted Teresa and Jane to kiss already, but I also knew that she understood that they had to wait for the right moment. It did surprise me though that the girl hadn't come up with some crazy plan to make them kiss.

"Well, if it's about Patrick then I guess we have to hurry, now don't we?"

She nodded, and I got up, grabbing her hand, and she already moved to pull me along with her. I tried to turn around to Minelli, and when I succeeded, consequently bringing my arm in a very awkward position, he just smiled at me, and nodded. And then I turned around the corner and lost sight of him.

We found Teresa in Christina's room, hugging her body, and I sighed. It would never end, would it?

Her head shot up when she heard us enter the room.

"Ah, there you are, thank god." She went from the little girl Minelli had been talking about to a strong woman in less than a second, and now I knew that she wasn't in any troubles. She had come to trust me in the short time I had been here, and that also included that she had opened up to me concerning her deeply buried feelings. The fact that she now didn't show any sadness or despair was a good thing.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just too nervous and I needed someone to talk to me."

"You've got Christina."

Teresa rolled her eyes. "Someone above the length of four feet."

"Well then, talk to me."

She sighed, and sat down, focusing on her hair. I stepped behind her and started fumbling with her long, dark strands, and she didn't complain. Before she started talking, I had started brushing her hair, doing that job for her since I liked working with hair. Which reminded me that I had to do my own hair too.

"I've had ample time to get used to me and Jane being together again, but it's still so... surreal. All these years, I was afraid of confronting Walter because I feared his reaction, and now it turns out that he even _encourages_ me to be with Jane."

She sighed, then, a small and beautiful smile crept on her lips.

"I get to be with Jane."

My heart warmed as I saw what that thought did to Teresa. It was a kind of love that was very rare, I had never seen it as strong as I had now. And for some reason, it fit Teresa – she was a unique woman as well, so her love for her man had to be unique as well.

"How are you going to tell him?"

She shrugged. "I haven't thought about that yet. I suppose I'm just going to do what my heart tells me to do."

"Did Walter say that?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, but it still makes sense. He's right. And anyway, I haven't seen Jane in days, God knows what I might do when I see him now."

I chuckled. "You'd probably jump him when you get the chance."

"No, highly unlikely... but you do have a point."

I smiled. She was going to be alright.

-YulianaHenderson-

All night, I had watched Jane and Teresa turn around each other.

He still didn't know that he had finally won the battle.

Teresa was still afraid of what her feelings might do when she told him.

When Christina collapsed on Johanna's lap and Teresa noticed that Jane was wandering closely around them, I could see she'd had enough.

She jumped up and snatched his wrist, and he looked like a young child caught with his hand in the cookie jar – very accurate description. But maybe he looked more scared than guilty, since he didn't know that Teresa pulled him aside to tell him her news.

Before I knew it, Christina pulled me along with her, her curiosity finally getting the better of her. And since Johanna was shamelessly flirting with Luther, who was going to watch little Christina?

I was the only person to do so – and frankly, I didn't mind. I was dying to see what Teresa was going to tell Jane.

We took the same position as we had done before, when we had listened in on another of Teresa's private conversations, sitting against a wall, out of sight for the couple. We had a perfect view on them though.

"You're stalking my daughter."

"_Our_ daughter."

"It still counts, Jane."

"What's wrong with me wanting to see our daughter?"

"A lot."

"Give me one reason."

She sighed, and shook her head.

"Don't turn this on me."

"I wasn't trying to."

She groaned. "You're unbelievable."

They were quiet for a long moment, it felt like hours but it was merely a minute, and then I saw Teresa shyly approaching Jane.  
For Jane, it was obvious it didn't register what she was doing before she was standing inches apart from him. She went on tip-toe and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead.

Next to me, I felt Christina getting over-exited.

Teresa continued her soft moves, kissing his cheek, his nose. She hesitated a bit after that, but then resolutely closed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his.

I saw him freezing, but he couldn't refuse this. This was what he had wanted, all these years.

The kiss started off brief and sweet, but quickly turned into a passionate one after Jane had pushed Teresa against the nearest wall. Their hands were everywhere, and then, out of nowhere, I heard a sob.

Teresa pulled away, and then I realized it was Jane who was softly crying.

She closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again and wrapped her arms around him.

"Don't cry Patrick, please."

"Why are you doing this to me, Teresa? You know we can't be together-"

"We can, though. Walter and I are getting a divorce."

Jane's body stilled, like it had before.

"You are what?"

"I'm leaving Walter, to be with you."

Jane only needed a few seconds for that to register, then he wrapped his arms around her tightly and lifted her into the air, only to put her down on a table, standing in between her slightly spread legs.

"Are you serious about this, Teresa? Are you really leaving him?"

She nodded. "And you get full custody over Christina too – with me."

"I love you, Teresa."

He crushed his lips down onto hers again, and before I knew it, Jane had lost his jacket and his hands were frantically fumbling with the small buttons of Teresa's dress, not leaving her lips one second.

I had never reacted so fast, pulling Christina with me out of the room and onto the hallway. I immediately knelt on the floor to be level with her eyes.

"Tell nobody about what you saw, okay, Chrissie? Promise me."

She was more than willing to go back into that room and watch Jane and Teresa kiss some more, but I didn't want her to return. They needed privacy, I had interfered in Teresa's life more than enough, she was allowed to have this moment with Jane.

I simply hoped they would be responsible this time, though I highly doubted it.

When almost an hour later, the two exited the room, I studied them. At first sight, they didn't look flushed, their clothes were intact and in place. Yet when they came over to sit with me and Christina, and Teresa grabbed Jane's hand to place a brief kiss on the top of it, I knew enough. That was confirmed when they both looked at me after a few long seconds and I saw the twinkling that was present in their eyes – they were more in love than they could ever be.

"Grace," Jane started, his voice a bit hoarse, and I saw Teresa blushing and averting her eyes, probably only now realizing that I would most probably know _why_ his voice was this hoarse. "We'd like it if you stayed for at least two weeks more."

"And why is that?"

"Because we'll be needing you as a witness for our wedding."

I smiled. Yep. They were definitely going to be alright.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so this is a weird ending to a weird story, if I might say so. For the frantic readers: Yes, you're correct, this didn't look like The Great Gatsby at all, but I liked the title so I just used that, lol. No, in the book, Gatsby is killed, and since I love Jane too much for that, I just couldn't do that. And I wanted a happy ending, and not a sad ending like the book has. So, here you go! Oh, only the epilogue to go, though. Hope you'll stick around a little longer to read that too!**


	8. Chapter Eight - Epilogue

**A/N: I desperately had to change perspective, having written from Van Pelt's eyes the entire time... I like Van Pelt, don't get me wrong, but I like the all-knowing, omniscient perspective better. It's easier too.**

**So, this is the Epilogue! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

* * *

**_'The Great Mr. Jane'_**

**_Chapter Eight – EPILOGUE_**

_Five years later_

Today was both a black and a bright day in the history of the Jane family – everybody was going to be reunited. Under strange circumstances, that might be added, but reunited nevertheless.

Grace was returning from her honeymoon to Hawaii – with Wayne. Hopefully without a child, they simply weren't ready for that yet.

Walter was coming back from his tour around Europe. He really had stayed away for so long, he had left straight after Jane and Teresa's wedding. He had stayed in the back, but had claimed a small part of the ceremony to say only loving words to his former wife. After all, they had shared many personal and intimate moments in their married times, and they were still best friends. It worked out just fine, staying friends after all they had been through.

Johanna and Luther were also joining them – with their four year old son, Tom. It didn't come as a surprise to anyone that they had been in a relationship all along, and that during the time Teresa and Walter were getting their divorce, Johanna had been pregnant. Grace had been the first one finding out their secret, but just as she did with most things, she had decided not to comment on it. It wasn't up to her to judge or make assumptions so she hadn't. If it had been Jane that had been in her position, everybody would've known within hours. Devil's in the details.

Minelli was joining, as was Cho, both alone but neither cared.

In short, everyone was coming together for a nice party – the fifth anniversary of Jane and Teresa's wedding, to be precise.

Teresa had spent hours on getting their children ready. Now twelve year old Christina had been too energetic to sit still in the chair, and had ended up with a simple ponytail on the top of her head because it was too difficult for Teresa to do anything with her hair. Four year old Mary had pulled all the pins Teresa was applying to her hair out, but maybe Christina's behavior had been contagious since she had been sitting next to her sibling, jumping up and down. Due to Mary having mostly Jane's genes, she copied everything she saw and therefore, Christina's actions too. Two year old Jeffrey had been too fascinated by Teresa's dress that was hanging much too closely to him to witness any of her frantic ranting and cursing. And six month old Grace was contently sleeping, but that didn't mean she didn't have to dress up for the occasion.

And then the biggest child of all was moaning, groaning and pouting at being abandoned by his wife.

"Teresaaa." No reply. "Tereeesaaaaa, come on."

"Jane, shut up. I would appreciate it if you would help, they're yours too."

He went quiet for a while, and Teresa attempted for the umpteenth time to get Mary's hair perfectly in shape, but failing – again.

"Well fine, what do you want me to do?"

He was attacked by an endless list of things that still needed to be done, and he helplessly listened to everything he was going to forget anyway.

"Okay, good luck with that, Teresa. I'll be in the kitchen, trying to save your turkey."

Teresa cursed and Jane chuckled, kissing her cheek and carefully disentangling Jeffrey's little hands from the expensive dress, then escaped the room.

Somewhere deep inside, he was surprised to see Grace and Wayne already sitting in the living room. But he knew them, he'd known they didn't find locks and doors important – he'd known already when he had noticed Grace and Christina spying on him and Teresa when she had told him the news. Grace was a nosey woman, even if she wouldn't admit it.

"Don't tell me you're with child," Jane said when he saw Wayne's eyes switching to her belly for just a split-second.

Grace groaned and Wayne's face was a picture.

"Oh, man, how did you know?"

"Your eyes. You looked at her belly when I walked in, and after having experienced four pregnancies of Teresa, I know exactly what look men use to look at their lover's swollen belly – or not so swollen belly. Trust me, it's perfectly fine. I simply hadn't expected you to start with children so soon."

Wayne wisely refrained from talking, and Grace decided it was better to change subject.

"Talking about kids, how are yours?"

"They are upstairs, Teresa is trying to get them ready for the party – in vain, of course, but I appreciate she tries. They are just like they were the last time."

"No, they are not. Your little one only used to be a month old when we went away, Jeffrey wasn't talking yet, Mary wasn't obsessed with her older sister and Christina wasn't a lady."

Wayne's eyes went wide with shock. "What do you mean with these last words?"

"Oh my god, I told you last week." Grace rolled her eyes in exasperation. She looked at Jane and found the same expression as Wayne had had.

"How did you know?"

"I spoke to Teresa, the exact same day we came home. It was the first thing she told me. Oh, remind me not to act like a sappy old woman if we ever get to that point. Trust me, I don't think any daughter is going to enjoy hearing their mother tell everybody that they had their period for the first time."

Jane turned around, not wanting to hear any of it, and he heard Grace chuckling.

"It's a good thing though, Patrick. A beautiful thing. She is no longer a little girl."

Jane turned back around. "She will always stay my little princess."

She nodded in understanding, and let out a long sigh, before getting up and moving towards the staircase.

"What are you going to do?" Wayne asked. She rolled her eyes again.

"I'm going to save Teresa from death, that's what I'm going to do."

Before any of the two men could say anything, she disappeared.

She found the rest of the Jane family in the big bedroom. Teresa and Christina were both sitting on a chair, and the younger children were running around the room. Little Grace was kicking her hands and feet into the air, cooing softly.

"Need some help?" Grace asked, and Teresa's head shot up.

"Auntie Grace!" Christina exclaimed, ran towards her and wrapped her arms around her.

"Hey Chrissie."

She chuckled, then pushed away and jumped on the chair next to her mother. Some things simply never changed.

Teresa swore she could see a change in Grace's demeanor – she looked happier, and although that wasn't a big surprise since she had now married Wayne, she did suspect that there was more to it.

Grace saw her looking at her, and immediately became uncomfortable. She hugged her body, then, to switch the attention to somebody else, she hurried over to Little Grace, only to find that the girl was still asleep.

"Grace," Teresa drawled, and soon, Christina knew what the two were doing. Her eyes went wide.

"Are you pregnant?" Christina all but exclaimed, incredulously, and got up once again to give Grace a big hug. Strong arms hugged her from behind as well, and Christina chuckled at Grace's shocked face.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you," a familiar voice said, and Teresa jumped up, wrapping her arms tightly around the person the voice belonged to.

It was Walter.

"Hey Reese," he said softly. She went on tip-toe and placed a kiss on his cheek.

They were friends. And they had always been friends, ever since they had met. They thought they could change it if they would sleep together but truth was, it couldn't be changed. It was a feeling, a nagging feeling, that wouldn't go away.

The past could not be changed, and in all honesty, they hadn't changed anything at all. It was there all along. Nobody bothered looking further than they could reach. If everybody just kept pretending, nobody had to lie or deceive to put on the act.

"I brought you something," he whispered to Teresa, then reached into his jacket and got out something silvery. He motioned for her to turn around and she did. He applied what felt like a necklace around her neck, and when she looked down, she saw an oval-shaped stone, black in general and white engravings. She lifted it to look at it and frowned. She turned around and saw a brightly smiling Walter.

"It's the Eiffel Tower-"

"I knew that, you idiot," she hissed, but smiled all the same.

"I bought it in Paris," he explained. "And... And I was hoping you would come with me once. To Europe. Just the two of us... as friends, of course."

She stared at him, and he blushed and looked away. Then, he shook his head to clear his thoughts and the blush disappeared.

"I miss you, Teresa. We may not have been perfect... lovers, but you are still my best friend. And I miss just talking to you-"

"Walter, it's fine, I understand." She paused, looked around. "But... I have a family now. They need me."

"I know."

Grace interrupted then, not after apologizing, of course.  
"I'm okay with watching your kids for a week, or two."

Walter smiled again, his blinding smile, the smile that Jane used too when he knew that he was winning an argument, and Teresa rolled her eyes.

"Fine, I'll come with you."

He clapped in his hands, and placed a kiss on her cheek. Then, he ran towards Jeffrey and picked him up. He came to stand beside Little Grace's bassinet.

"Okay, when I left, these weren't here yet."

Grace laughed, Teresa simply rolled her eyes. He didn't mince his words, and she faintly wondered how she had survived eight years of marriage with him. But then again, he hadn't been so carefree when they were still married. It was almost as though when they had removed their wedding rings, the little boy he had always hidden somewhere deep down had surfaced. Teresa was glad he was in Europe most of the time, she wasn't sure she could've survived having him around _all the time_.

"Mary wasn't here either."

"No, but she was in your belly."

"But that's not out here."

Now Walter rolled his eyes. He put Jeffrey down, who had been staring at Walter ever since he had been picked up, and then Walter reached into the bag he had put against the wall before he had interrupted conversation.

He got out a few things, then walked over to all the kids save Christina to give them something.

"You're Santa?" Grace teased. Walter blew her a raspberry, and she chuckled.

Little Grace got a silver rattle, and when Walter shook it gently, she awoke and immediately started inspecting the item.

Jeffrey got a wooden car. He stared at it, then he got a big smile on his face, chuckled and started playing with it.

Mary had her index finger in her mouth and was standing close to her mother. She didn't know this man, and suddenly he was giving them all presents. Her opinion changed though when she saw the cute doll Walter reached out to her.

Teresa smiled sweetly at Walter, and he mimicked the smile, then he rolled his eyes when Christina was about to throw a tantrum since she didn't get any presents. Walter grabbed her hand.

"Come, Chrissie," he said softly, before pulling her with him. Christina frowned at her mother, but let him pull her along.

Teresa took the opportunity to quickly finish Mary's hair, now that her attention was completely absorbed in the doll. Teresa sighed out of relief when she finally succeeded.

"Good, now that that's settled-"

She was interrupted by a loud scream, and she all but dropped the comb she was holding and ran to where the exclamation had come from. Grace followed her.

They found Christina and Walter in her room.

"Mom!" she exclaimed. Teresa had to blink a few times to catch up with what was happening – Walter had bought Christina six different dresses, and he smiled smugly at the enthusiasm of the young girl.

"I bought a dress in every country I visited."

Christina gasped, taking a light blue one in her hands, caressing the fabric. "Which countries?"

"Six."

"Which, Walter?"

Walter sighed exaggeratingly. "Fine. France, Spain, Germany, Austria, The Netherlands and England."

"I haven't even heard of half of these countries," Christina mumbled while she was still observing the dresses. Then, she pushed the dresses away and went to embrace Walter.

"Thank you, Walter."

He simply shrugged, and wrapped his arms tighter around her.

"I figured, because you're becoming a lady now, you need pretty dresses."

She smiled, and nodded.

Jane and Wayne stepped into the room too, frowns on their faces.

"Where's the fire?" Jane asked. Then, he saw what Walter had done, and his small smile fell. Teresa immediately hit his arm, and he startled, before looking at her.

She was silently judging him, telling that he shouldn't do what he was about to. He sighed and got out of the room. Teresa smiled apologetically at Walter, adding a small 'the dresses are nice' and then followed Jane out of the room.

Jane was now wandering through the halls, on his way back to the kitchen. She stopped him.

"Patrick," she said softly, but he didn't turn around. "Patrick, she's _your_ daughter, but she was _his_ daughter too for seven years. You can't just assume that either of them forgets about their time. He may have showed it in all the wrong ways, but he still loves her. He's not going to take her away from you, I promise, Patrick. He knows she's your daughter." She brushed his cheek when he turned around. "He still loves her, like he loves me, but he's not going to take me away from you either."

"I... I'm sorry, Teresa. I know that. I should know better. But I've spent seven years looking at you and Christina from a distance and now that you're mine..."

"I'm nobody's, Patrick. Not yours, not Walter's."

He smiled. "I know, my love."

He brushed her cheek too, and leaned in for a small kiss.

"Now go and admire all these dress with Chrissie... and _Walter_."

He pouted, and she rolled her eyes. "Patrick, I'm not asking you to _love_ him, just live with him in peace, now that he's going to stay here for a while."

He sighed. Then, she smiled a devilish smile.

"Oh, and Walter and I'll be going to Europe together."

She ran away, loudly laughing, to avoid Jane's teasing hit on her butt.

It turned out that everything was going to be just fine.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading! See you all in a bit, I suppose. I'll be looking at a new chapter for Once Upon a Child either tonight or tomorrow, so be prepared! ^^**

**The Great Mr. Jane is OUT!**


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